China's oldest panda dies

Photo: The Canadian Press

China is mourning the death of the world's oldest panda, Basi, who attracted millions of visitors during a visit to the United States 30 years ago.

Caretakers in the eastern city of Fuzhou said Basi was suffering from a number of ailments, including liver and kidney problems, when she died Wednesday at age 37.

Her body is to be preserved and placed in a museum dedicated to her life, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Thursday.

"She was very talented and liked weight-lifting, riding a bicycle and playing basketball," Xinhua said.

Born in the wild in 1980, Basi was discovered by villagers after falling into an icy river in the western province of Sichuan at age 4 and sent to the breeding centre in Fuzhou. She lived out her life there without giving birth to cubs.

She made a then-rare visit to San Diego in the United States in 1987, where she drew more than 2 million visitors during a 200-day stay accompanied by fellow panda Yuan Yuan, and was the model for the mascot of the 11th Asian Games, held in Beijing in 1990.

An estimated 1,864 exist in the wild, where they are threatened chiefly with habitat loss, and around 420 others live in captivity in zoos and reserves, the majority within China.