Longleat safari park red panda cubs die in cold snap

Tala and Sumi were born in early summer

A rare pair of red panda cubs bred at Longleat have died during the cold snap.

Twins Tala and Sumi, who were born in early summer, were found dead in their nesting box at the Wiltshire safari park on Thursday morning.

It is thought they died from hypothermia, a spokesman for the park said.

The fact their mother had stopped providing supportive feeds may also have played a part, they added.

The cubs were born to parents Emma and Lionel and were first seen by the public in September when they began to venture outside.

Red pandas are native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China, where temperatures can reach -15C (5F).

Temperatures at Longleat are thought to have dipped to between -7C (19.4F) and -8C (17.6F) overnight into Thursday.

But keepers at the safari park think the fact that their mother had started the weaning process and was no longer providing supportive feeds may have contributed to the cubs' deaths.

The cubs were part of a breeding programme aimed at boosting numbers of the endangered species

The spokesman said: "We've provided an increase in diet, shelter and bedding, however the cubs were mostly still dependant on their mum."

Red pandas have a very high mortality rate, Longleat said, with just one in five wild pandas surviving to adulthood.

The species are classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with as few as 2,500 thought to be living in the wild.

Their main threats are habitat loss, deforestation and poaching.

Tala and Sumi were the seventh and eighth red pandas to have been born at Longleat, which is part of a breeding programme to try and boost numbers.

Previous cubs have gone on to collections all over Europe, with some starting to have cubs of their own.

'Sadness at saying goodbye'

Longleat said the twins had been "closely monitored and looked after by our dedicated team".

The spokesman said: "We know so many of you have loved seeing these beautiful creatures for yourselves and will share our sadness in having to say goodbye to them.

"Thank you for your understanding at this time, especially for our keepers who formed such a special bond with them both."