The year 2016 seems to be going strong with its ominous streak as reports state that the world's oldest male panda, Pan Pan, died on Wednesday in China's Sichuan Province.
Twin panda cubs reunited one month after birth
An autopsy is currently being carried out to find the reason behind the death. However, the circumstances of his death are not thought to be suspicious.
"Pan Pan was the equivalent to about 100 human years, but he had been living with cancer and his health had deteriorated in the past three days. He had lost consciousness," a keeper with the Dujiangyan base of the China Conservation and Research Centre for Giant Panda Tan Chengbin told Xinhua.
Pan Pan did not respond and move out to have dinner when the keeper called his name and offered him food, usually steamed corn bread or fresh bamboo leaves.
Watch Pan Pan celebrate his 31st birthday
The panda, aged 31, lived in captivity since he was just a few months old. He was born in the wild in Sichuan's Baoxing County in 1985. Pan Pan was called 'Panda grandpa' by many and was diagnosed with cancer in June. Reports state that he also suffered from various age-related ailments like cataract. His name Pan Pan means expectation in Chinese
Pan Pan has fathered many panda cubs over the past 20 years and reports state that he has more than 130 descendants which account for the world's 25 percent population of captive-bred pandas.
The average lifespan of wild pandas is usually 20 years, but the ones who live in captivity generally live longer. A 36-year-old female panda named Basi is currently the oldest panda in the world. Giant pandas are one of the most endangered species in the world.
