Cameras captured images of a panda in a nature reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province three years after it was released into the wild, the provincial forestry department said Monday.
The pictures and videos of the panda were taken at the Yele Nature Reserve in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in late February.
Researchers identified it as a panda they released into the wild in 2013 named Zhang Xiang. The panda is living in a suitable environment where it can find enough bamboo. After investigating the pictures, videos and samples of the pandas's excrement, researchers found it was in normal physical condition.
The finding also proves that the panda has moved from one population to another and marks an achievement in releasing pandas into the wilderness in China.
Zhang Xiang is a female giant panda born on August 20, 2011. Zhang Xiang was released into the wild in Liziping Nature Reserve in Ya'an City on Nov. 6, 2013 following two years of wilderness training.
