The first giant panda cub born in Indonesia squeals and squirms in park video

Advertisement

Advertise with us

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — The first giant panda cub born in Indonesia is noisy, nursing well and showing other signs of good health, the conservation park where he was born said Sunday.

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/12/2025 (297 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — The first giant panda cub born in Indonesia is noisy, nursing well and showing other signs of good health, the conservation park where he was born said Sunday.

Indonesian Safari Park released video and photos showing the fuzzy newborn in an incubator and squirming and squealing while being cuddled by his mother.

The mother, 15-year-old Hu Chun, gave birth to Satrio Wiratama — nicknamed Rio — on Nov. 27 at the park in Cisarua, West Java province.

In this undated photo released by Taman Safari Indonesia or Indonesia Safari Park on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, a newly born giant panda cub named Satrio Wiratama is seen inside an incubator in Cisarua, West Java, Indonesia, (Taman Safari Indonesia via AP)
In this undated photo released by Taman Safari Indonesia or Indonesia Safari Park on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, a newly born giant panda cub named Satrio Wiratama is seen inside an incubator in Cisarua, West Java, Indonesia, (Taman Safari Indonesia via AP)

The name symbolizes the hope, resilience, and shared commitment of Indonesia and China in protecting endangered species, the park said in a statement.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced the baby panda’s name Thursday and showed his photo when he met Wang Huning, a top Chinese political adviser and leading ideologist.

Rio is stable and showing healthy early signs such as strong vocalization, effective nursing and steady weight gain while being monitored constantly. He is expected to develop better temperature control, fur growth, open his eyes and move more in the next several weeks.

The conservation park said it was prioritizing the health and welfare of the mother and baby and he would not yet be accessible to the public.

The adult pandas, Cai Tao and Hu Chun, arrived in Indonesia in 2017 on a 10-year conservation partnership with China. They live in an enclosure built for them at the park about 70 kilometers (43 miles) from Jakarta.

Pandas are widely considered as China’s unofficial mascot and its loans of the animals to overseas zoos have long been seen as a tool of Beijing’s soft-power diplomacy, also known as “panda diplomacy.”

Giant pandas have difficulty breeding and births are particularly welcomed. There are less than 1,900 giant pandas in their only wild habitats in the Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu.

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

Teacher barred for ‘repeated boundary-crossing conduct’

Maggie Macintosh 3 minute read Monday, Sep. 28, 2026

A disciplinary panel has ordered the cancellation of a Chinese-Canadian teacher’s certificate because of her “repeated boundary-crossing with a student” during her tenure at an international school with local ties.

Janice Wen Ying Ma is permanently barred from teaching on Manitoba soil or at a Manitoba-accredited institution as of Sept. 14.

The new ruling concludes that Ma engaged in inappropriate physical interaction and “emotionally intimate online messages” with a girl who attended Clifford International School in Guangzhou, China in 2024-25.

“This conduct represents a fundamental departure from the standards expected of a teacher,” the panel, chaired by public representative Gordon Schumacher, wrote in its 22-page decision.

The first giant panda cub born in Indonesia squeals and squirms in park video

Edna Tarigan, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

The first giant panda cub born in Indonesia squeals and squirms in park video

Edna Tarigan, The Associated Press 2 minute read Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — The first giant panda cub born in Indonesia is noisy, nursing well and showing other signs of good health, the conservation park where he was born said Sunday.

Indonesian Safari Park released video and photos showing the fuzzy newborn in an incubator and squirming and squealing while being cuddled by his mother.

The mother, 15-year-old Hu Chun, gave birth to Satrio Wiratama — nicknamed Rio — on Nov. 27 at the park in Cisarua, West Java province.

The name symbolizes the hope, resilience, and shared commitment of Indonesia and China in protecting endangered species, the park said in a statement.

Read
Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025

Province to acquire campground near former residential school

Morgan Modjeski 3 minute read Preview

Province to acquire campground near former residential school

Morgan Modjeski 3 minute read Yesterday at 6:00 AM CDT

A burial site for dozens of children who died while attending the Brandon Indian Residential School will be acquired by the province, the Free Press has learned.

Premier Wab Kinew will announce the province’s plan to protect Turtle Crossing Campground at a news conference in Brandon Wednesday to mark National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The move is in partnership with the City of Brandon.

The graves of at least 56 children are located at the campground, the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation has said, pointing to a geophysical study conducted by an archaeology firm in 2018.

There have been longstanding concerns from Indigenous leaders and community members that people were camping on the resting place of children victimized by colonialism.

Read
Yesterday at 6:00 AM CDT

Canada resorting to its tried and true playbook

Niigaan Sinclair 5 minute read Preview

Canada resorting to its tried and true playbook

Niigaan Sinclair 5 minute read Monday, Sep. 28, 2026

In 1846, Britain faced an emergency influenced by the Irish famine, so leaders repealed the country’s “Corn Laws” and restrictions on imported food and grain, transitioning to a system of free trade.

This created a crisis in the then Province of Canada, which had relied on British “preferential” status to prop up its agricultural and resource industries.

As a result, Canada looked south for new markets and eventually negotiated a free trade agreement with the United States.

This required land to be acquired and converted for industrial use quickly, so Canada quickly dispatched Commissioner William Robinson to negotiate with Indigenous communities along Lake Huron and Lake Superior for land.

Read
Monday, Sep. 28, 2026

Puzzles Palace

1 minute read Monday, Jul. 27, 2026

To solve our puzzles, please subscribe with this special offer: |

Orange Shirt Day project fits students to a tee

Maggie Macintosh 5 minute read Preview

Orange Shirt Day project fits students to a tee

Maggie Macintosh 5 minute read Monday, Sep. 28, 2026

On the eve of Orange Shirt Day, hundreds of black T-shirts will be handed out to teenagers at Elmwood High School — and there wasn’t a mixup in the clothing procurement process.

The student-run business behind the initiative wanted to make a statement about “truth and reconciliation” being a year-round activity, said Daniel Concepcion, a Grade 12 student.

Daniel said given that black is a staple in the wardrobe of teenagers, he hopes these shirts won’t sit on hangers for 364 days of the year.

“Every child matters, every part of the day, every day,” the 17-year-old said.

Read
Monday, Sep. 28, 2026