For the first time, China will release artificially bred giant
pandas back to nature in 2005, according to Zhang Hemin, director
of the
Wolong
Giant Panda Protection Research Center in southwest China’s
Sichuan Province.
Experts predict that this represents a major step towards returning
one of the most endangered animals in the world to their natural
habitat.
Upon the completion of the second phase of the Giant Panda Park
next year, some 40-50 artificially bred giant pandas will live in
the semi-natural habitat, which is very close to the real thing,
said Zhang.
“Building the semi-natural habitat aims at enabling giant pandas to
gain the capabilities to survive in the wild and finally develop
hereditary varieties of this endangered species,” he said.
Zhang said the first phase of the Giant Panda Park recently went
into operation and more than 10 giant pandas are living in the
park.
He
stressed that the nature reserve would provide a natural protective
screen for the released giant panda to survive and proliferate.
This means that the released pandas in 2005 will still live within
the Wolong Nature Reserve.
It
is reported that there are less than 1,000 giant pandas in the
world, 40 percent distributed in natural reserves and about 110
artificially bred. Experts said that most of giant pandas have lost
their wild nature, and they have difficulty in natural mating.
(www.h5a3.com 09/05/2001)