Fota Wildlife Park's three panda cubs venture out of their nest for the first time

Three red panda cubs are taking their first steps into the outside world at the Fota Wildlife Park in Cork.

The cubs, two female and one male, were born on June 9, but are only now beginning to emerge from their nest. Red Pandas are blind at birth, and their eyes may not fully open for a month or more. In the wild, red panda cubs will stay in the nest with their mother for up to three months as they develop their senses.

Now they can see, the cubs will slowly start to leave the nest for brief periods at dawn or dusk until they are gradually acclimated to the park environment.

The pandas in Fota Wildlife Park are of the subspecies Ailurus fulgens fulgens, native to India and Nepal. Red Pandas belong to their own unique family, the Ailuridae. They were first thought to be relatives of the Giant Panda native to China, but DNA analysis later revealed they are most closely related to the racoon.

Red pandas are critically endangered as the population has declined 50% in the last 20 years. Due to their habitat accurate numbers are difficult to obtain, but current estimates place the wild population between 10,000 and 2,500.

The panda cubs at Fota are fed a primarily bamboo diet, which is grown throughout the park. According to the park's website, bamboo increased in popularity as a decorative plant in Victorian times and is now found in a number of wildlife parks and refuges across Ireland and the UK.

Tickets to the Fota Wildlife Park are available here, though it is likely the cubs will not emerge from the nest during opening hours for a few more weeks.

The Dublin Zoo is home to its own family of red pandas, which are consistently the most popular exhibit according to polls conducted by staff. Tickets for the Dublin Zoo, located just off Phoenix Park, including day tickets and annual passes, are available here.