An An, world's oldest male giant panda, dies at 35

An An, the world's oldest male giant panda in captivity, has been put to sleep at the age of 35.

Ocean Park , the marine and animal facility in Hong Kong where he lived, said Thursday that An An was euthanised after he started showing signs of deteriorating health over the past few weeks and that he had stopped taking food.

Giant pandas, a species of bear, generally live up to 30 years in captivity, and so An An lived to an age equivalent to 105 years for humans.


An An, together with a female giant panda named Jia Jia, were gifted from the Chinese government. Jia Jia died at the theme park in 2016 at the age of 38 years, the oldest known female giant panda in captivity.

“An An has brought us fond memories with numerous heart-warming moments. His cleverness and playfulness will be dearly missed,” a statement from the theme park said.

An An was kept away from visitors at the park as his health worsened and he started suffering high blood pressure, a common condition among elderly pandas

China, which engages in so-called panda diplomacy, gave Hong Kong another pair of pandas — Ying Ying, a female, and Le Le, a male — in 2007 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the city going back to Beijing's control.