Artificial intervention hindering panda survival

More research on the release of captive-bred pandas into the wild is needed as artificial intervention is hindering their chances of survival.

At the International Symposium on Giant Panda Conservation Conference, which was held from Nov. 7 to 12 in Chengdu City, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, Chinese panda experts revealed that research and practices would be developed.

Zhang Hemin, director of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, said it is a good time to train and release pandas into the wild as the number of captive-bred pandas has been increasing at a stable rate.

A total of 49 panda cubs were born in China this year, with 42 surviving, marking a record for giant panda breeding in the country, according to Zhang.

Only when there is a stable growth trend of the wild panda population will the rare species no longer be endangered, Zhang said.

CHINA'S PANDA RELEASE PROCESS

China started releasing artificially-bred pandas into the wild in 2006 when five-year-old male panda Xiang Xiang was released. However, Xiang Xiang died after fighting with other pandas over food and territory roughly a year after being introduced to the wild.

The failure of Xiang Xiang's release can be attributed to too much artificial intervention when he was being trained, said Huang Yan, deputy chief engineer of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda.

Scientists and experts have drawn lessons from the failure and improved training methods to help pandas adapt to the wild better, Huang said.

In June 2010, experts adopted small-scale training programs for pandas before releasing them to their natural habitat. The training program focuses on encouraging panda cubs to learn survival skills from their mothers, including climbing trees, searching for food and finding shelter in the wild.

Tao Tao, a male panda, was successfully released in Liziping nature reserve, Sichuan Province, in October 2012.

Unlike Xiang Xiang's captive-bred environment, Tao Tao grew up in semi-wild conditions from a young age. Therefore, his fighting capabilities and survival skills were both significantly better than that of Xiang Xiang, said Zhang Hemin.

Researchers have been following Tao Tao with the help of a GPS ring attached to his neck, radio positioning tools and DNA extracted from his excrement. They have also been studying the panda's activities and hormones.

Tao Tao was living well in the wild at the beginning of 2013 as photographs showed that he was in good condition.

Earlier this month, experts released the first artificially-bred female giant panda Zhang Xiang into the wild in Liziping nature reserve.

Huang Yan said Zhang Xiang had shared similar experiences to Tao Tao during her pre-release training period.

Both of them learned to walk at 4 months old. They could climb trees within five months and search for food following their mothers when they were 14 months old, according to Huang.

They could avoid disasters and look for food in extreme weather.

To minimize human influence during the panda's growth process, researchers have to wear panda costumes and keep quiet when getting close to them, Huang said.

They do not rely on humans completely. They show high vigilance and move away when encountering humans, Huang said.

With the help of simulation models during training, they have become vigilant against their natural enemies or other dangerous species, Huang added.