The Philadelphia Zoo proudly announced the names of its two new red panda cubs Friday.
The cubs, Benjamin and Betsy, were born at the zoo on June 26th and debuted to the public in November.
The zoo asked the public for help naming the cubs. After thousands of entries, staff compiled a list and then asked the public to vote. The zoo received 40,000 votes and Benjamin and Betsy, with 17,000 votes, were the overwhelming winners.
“We are thrilled that so many people participated in naming our new panda cubs,” Kevin Murphy, General Curator, said in a release. “There were some really great submissions and paring down the list wasn’t easy but we are happy with the end result. This was a great way to build excitement as well as welcome these two important cubs to the Philadelphia Zoo.”
The names pay tribute to Betsy Ross, who is credited with making the first American flag, and Benjamin Franklin, one of the nation’s founding fathers.
Zoo officials say the cubs, and the mother, are doing very well.
