Henry, the 4-year-old male Red Panda of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Virginia is dead. He died overnight at December 5th – without showing any signs of an illness. According to the press release he was “in apparent good health, eating well and urinating and defecating normally”. Henry had also no signs of trauma or injury.
The SCBI has ordered a pathology report.
Born at SCBI
Henry was born at June 2014 to parents Regan and Rocco and – because of the unability of his mother in raising cubs in the past – hand-reared by the keepers.
Red Pandas in the wild reach a life expectancy about 8 to 10 years. In zoos, Red Pandas often live longer, sometimes 16 years or older.