(Sixteen panda cubs, shown here in this picture with their expert caretakers, debuted at the Wolong Panda Research Center in southwestern China's Sichuan Province, Friday, December 16, 2005. Photo: cnsphoto)

Sixteen panda cubs, shown with their expert caretakers, debuted Friday at the Wolong Panda Research Center in southwestern China's Sichuan Province.

Professor Zhang Hemin, head of the Wolong research group, said that the species has produced more cubs than ever before, with sixteen born and nurtured at his center at the Wolong base, and another two born in the United States.

The famous panda expert said that Wolong is home to more than 140 wild pandas, accounting for about 10 percent of the entire panda population living in China.

Professor Zhang Hemin added that his center leads the world in panda research and protection due to Chinese government's support and researchers' efforts in this regard.

Screening work is underway on choosing the pair of candidate pandas, which are scheduled to be sent to Taiwan, in accordance with an agreement made between the Communist Party of China and Kuomintang, during Lien Chan's visit to the mainland in May this year.