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CUTE CUB. One of Hong Kong’s twin giant panda cubs makes its debut appearance to the media at Ocean Park during a greeting ceremony in Hong Kong on February 15, 2025. Hong Kong’s youngest celebrities, twin six-month-old panda cubs, made their first public appearance before adoring fans last month. The cubs, born August 15, are Hong Kong’s first locally born giant panda cubs. They don’t yet have names — they are being referred to as "Elder Sister" and "Little Brother" — and a public competition to name them has been launched. Residents may submit their suggestions via the park’s website, and the cubs’ names will be announced in the first half of the year. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

PANDAMANIA. One of Hong Kong’s twin giant panda cubs makes its debut appearance to the media at Ocean Park during a greeting ceremony in Hong Kong on February 15, 2025. With the cubs’ birth, Hong Kong now has the largest number of pandas in captivity outside of mainland China. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

DEBUT APPEARANCE. One of Hong Kong’s twin giant panda cubs makes its debut appearance to the media at Ocean Park during a greeting ceremony in Hong Kong on February 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

NAME NEEDED. One of Hong Kong’s twin giant panda cubs makes its debut appearance to the media at Ocean Park during a greeting ceremony in Hong Kong on February 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

From The Asian Reporter, V35, #3 (March 3, 2025), pages 1, 2 & 7.

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s youngest celebrities, twin six-month-old panda cubs, made their first public appearance before adoring fans in mid-February.

The cubs, born August 15, are Hong Kong’s first locally born giant panda cubs. They live at the Ocean Park theme park along with their parents and two other giant pandas that arrived from mainland China last year.

Crowds flocked to the park February 15 to get a glimpse of the pandas inside their enclosure. Their caretakers were on hand as the pandas climbed up a tree trunk or slept on a swing.

A large selection of panda-themed souvenirs was available.

The cubs don’t have names yet — they are being referred to as "Elder Sister" and "Little Brother." A public competition to name them was launched last month following an event attended by Hong Kong leader John Lee and other officials. Residents can submit their suggestions via the park’s website, and the cubs’ names will be announced in the first half of the year.

Visitors can see the cubs for five hours daily or can pay 1,500 Hong Kong dollars (about $190) to see them before the park opens.

With the cubs’ birth, Hong Kong now has the largest number of pandas in captivity outside of mainland China.

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