Panda cubs in Sichuan greet the coming Chinese New Year

Staff members posed with 11 giant panda cubs for a Chinese New Year photo at the Wolong Giant Panda Research Base on Wednesday.

The 11 cubs are among the 31 pandas born at Wolong last year, including 15 females and 16 males.

The cubs, which are being held by their keepers, have attracted thousands of visitors to the center. People who can’t make the trip to the research base in Sichuan Province in person can see live streaming video of its black-and-white residents.

To date, 32 giant pandas have been sent from Wolong to zoos around the world in a bid to promote global scientific research into panda breeding and to raise the profile of what was until recently an endangered species. The research base has partnered with 15 zoos in 13 countries in an international breeding program that has seen the birth of 19 pandas.