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After the National Zoo’s 6-day-old baby panda cub died last month, the zoo said it would take two weeks for a pathology investigation to figure out what killed the cub. Now, the zoo says that the necropsy has been running on schedule, and the results could be released next week.
The results of the necropsy could be announced at a press conference as soon as the long weekend is over, according to National Zoo spokeswoman Jennifer Zoon.
So far, the cause of the panda’s death has remained a mystery. A lack of physical damage to the cub meant that a crushing death via panda mother Mei Xiang was unlikely, while an initial necropsy suggested problems with the cub’s abdominal fluid and liver.
Meanwhile, Mei Xiang has been eating more and appearing more often in the zoo’s outdoor enclosure, according to an update from the zoo.
Photo by Flickr user himnosaar used under a Creative Commons license.