Chongqing Zoo holds a collective birthday party for six giant pandas on June 10. They are three-year-old "Shuangshuang", "Chongchong", "Xixi" and "Qingqing" and one-year-old "Xingxing" and "Chenchen". Photo: China News Service

With the fast development of artificial panda breeding technologies, the number of giant pandas in zoos and breeding centers around the world amounts to 673 at present, doubling the number a decade ago. This shows the fruits of the ecological protection concept and the continuous improvement of scientific and technological level of the world, experts said. 

According to Duan Zhaogang, director of China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, the population of giant pandas living in their native habitat in China has grown to 1,864 from 1,114 in the 1980s, with the area of protected panda habitat increasing significantly, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday. 

With an all-out effort by China to breed giant pandas in captivity, the quantity and quality of captive bred giant pandas have seen a rapid development, Duan said. He noted that the development of giant panda protection cause is based on the progress of the ecological protection concept and the continuous improvement of science and technology. 

As the "state team" for giant panda conservation and research, the center has taken the lead to formulate the technical standards for artificial insemination of giant pandas on the basis of overcoming a series of difficulties of artificial panda breeding, Duan said. 

The center has also set up the world's largest platform with most extensive cooperation for international and domestic cooperation and exchange of giant pandas. The number of countries and regions in cooperation with the center has increased to 16 and such cooperation had successfully helped pandas living overseas breed 21 cubs, according to Xinhua.  

Besides, the center has successfully explored and established a set of techniques for wildness training, releasing and monitoring giant pandas in the wild. So far nine artificially bred pandas among 10 released by the center into the wild have survived, which laid a solid foundation for the survival of artificially bred giant pandas in their natural habitat and restore and growth of endangered species with small populations in the wild, Xinhua said. 

In order to preserve the genetic resources of small populations, the center also initiated the studies on the mating of artificially bred female pandas with male pandas in the wild. The center released six female pandas artificially bred or rescued from their native habitat into the wild to mate with male pandas and successfully bred 10 cubs, with eight surviving, Xinhua said. 

In the future, the center will focus on the construction of the national park for giant pandas, strengthen basic researches, apply key technologies for wild release and introduction, promote the integrated development of in-situ and ex-situ conservation of giant pandas and deepen cooperation and exchanges on giant pandas, Duan said. 

Global Times