The oldest male giant panda in captivity, died on Thursday at the age of 35, the Hong Kong Zoo announced.
The animal had spent most of his life at the zoo. His health had deteriorated in recent weeks, while his physical activity and appetite had declined sharply. He was euthanized by veterinarians on Thursday morning, according to a statement from Ocean Park Zoo and Amusement Park.
An An’s age was equivalent to a human age of 105 years, the park said.
The “difficult decision” to euthanize was made for welfare reasons, in consultation with Chinese experts, the zoo said.
Born in the wild in the mainland province of Sichuan, An An was one of a pair of pandas donated to Hong Kong by Beijing to celebrate the second anniversary of the city’s handover from Britain in 1999. He and his partner Jia Jia spent the rest of their lives in Ocean Park.
They were a venerable couple – Jia Jia held the Guinness World Records for oldest living panda and oldest panda in captivity when she died in 2016 at the age of 38.
