The giant panda is, in my words, edging away from the possibility of extinction thanks to captive breeding programs by the Chinese and overall efforts in terms of their conservation.
Chinese scientists in China are pleased with the rise in the number of giant pandas. One of those people is Hou Rong, 55, a researcher at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Sichuan province in south-west China. She and her colleagues over 35 years have increased the panda population at the base from 18 to 235.
She said:
“I always believed breeding giant pandas is only a stage. Our ultimate goal is for them to regain their wildness and go back to the wild, where they can live and procreate for ever.”
A report in 2021 tells us that the population of the giant panda has risen over the past 40 years from 1,104 to 1,864 and as a consequence the threat level of extinction has been downgraded from ‘endangered’ to “vulnerable of extinction”.
So, this highly popular and adorable species is still vulnerable to extinction but great strides have been made to protect it for future generations.
Beijing has put a lot of effort into its conservation. The number of giant pandas in captivity reached 673 worldwide. This is double the number 10 years ago.
The giant panda acts as a kind of diplomat for the Chinese because they are leased out on loan to other countries. It seems to me it is an act of friendship and the giant panda acts as glue in that friendship. When things go wrong between China and other countries, they ask for the giant panda back; symbolic of the break in the relationship.
Hou Rong became devoted to the giant panda’s conservation as a young girl and she is now at the forefront of proposals to toughen conservation laws. She said:
“Biodiversity conservation entails hard work from various fields. Ecological protection has become a consensus of the Chinese people.”
I am delighted to hear those words. She is a delegate to the National People’s Congress, the Chinese Parliament which is meeting this week in Beijing. She wants all sides to come together in an effort to protect biodiversity. And a major step in that goal is to protect the habitats of the giant panda.
The giant panda is a bear species and is only found in China. We know their appearance, an amazing appearance in fact with their super high contrast black-and-white coat and round anatomy. Their cousin, the red panda is equally adorable.
99% of their diet is made up of bamboo shoots and leaves. In the wild they might eat other grasses and wild tubers. Sometimes they eat animals such as birds, rodents and carrion. Sometimes in captivity they receive fish, eggs, oranges, bananas and honey together with specially prepared foods.
They live in mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan. They’ve lost a lot of their habitat due to farming, commercial development of their area and deforestation.
The species used to live in lowland areas but has been driven out and is now reliant upon end-stage conservation efforts. A desperate effort to bring them back from near extinction which as mentioned above has been successful.
Below are some more pages on bears….
