Two pairs of panda twins born on same day in Chongqing

CHONGQING, July 16 (Xinhua) -- Two giant pandas in a zoo in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality gave birth to two pairs of twins on June 23, the zoo said Tuesday.

Female panda Lanxiang, 17, gave birth to a pair of male cubs in the wee hours of June 23, weighing 167 and 115 grams, respectively.

Another female panda, Mangzai, gave birth to a pair of female cubs in the afternoon on the same day, measuring 142 and 160 grams in weight, respectively.

This was the second time that the two giant pandas gave birth to twins, according to the zoo.

Chongqing zoo began to raise giant pandas in the 1960s and began to breed panda cubs in the 1980s.

So far, the zoo has bred 36 giant pandas, including nine pairs of twins and one set of triplets.