Nature & Environment

Wild giant panda population is on the rise

By T.K. Randall
February 28, 2015

Image: Giant Panda Eating Bamboo
Credit: Chen Wu / CC BY 2.0 (adapted) The panda has long been viewed as a prime example of a species at risk of extinction due to the destructive habits of mankind, but in a rare case of good news for conservationists this week China's State Administration of Forestry has revealed that the number of pandas living in the wild has increased by 268 in the last ten years.

The survey also revealed that the areas in which the pandas live, China's Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces, have also increased in size by 2.5 million hectares.The news has been greeted with great enthusiasm by conservationists including the WWF's John Baker who described it as "a demonstration of successful conservation actions."

"Much of this success is due to the implementation of policy changes including banning commercial logging in panda habitats and more effective management of forest protected areas," he said.

Source: Telegraph

Tags: Giant Panda, China