Vienna Zoo says names for twin panda cubs chosen

VIENNA (Reuters) - Twin panda cubs born at Vienna's Schoenbrunn Zoo this summer will be officially named at a ceremony this month after animal lovers in an online poll picked a name for the male cub, the park said on Thursday. The Austrian zoo said in October it had chosen the name for the female cub but then appealed to animal lovers to help find a name for her brother. Some 12,000 people voted, with almost half picking Fu Ban, which means "happy companion". The zoo also revealed for the first time on Thursday the name it had picked for the female cub - Fu Feng. Commenting on the female cub's name, zoo director Dagmar Schratter said in a statement: "Feng stands for Phoenix and forms the imperial couple in Chinese mythology together with the dragon (Long)." Giant panda Yang Yang gave birth to the cubs on Aug. 7. The official naming ceremony has been set for Nov. 23. The cubs are doing well, the zoo said, with the female now weighing 4.26 kilograms (9.39 lb) and the male 3.97 kilograms (8.75 lb). (Writing By Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Gareth Jones)