GPS Tracking Reveals That Pandas Aren’t Lonely

7 Apr 2015

The National Zoo reports that there are only about 1,600 giant pandas remaining in the wild, making this beautiful animal an endangered species.

While these low numbers might indicate that the giant panda would be an isolated and somewhat lonely creature, a new study from Michigan State University indicates that may not be the case.

Researchers from Michigan State University used GPS telemetry, by attaching a GPS tracking device to five pandas belonging to Wolong National Nature Reserve in China and tracking the movements of the animal over time to estimate the home ranges and core areas of five giant pandas.

Appearing in the Journal of Mammalogy, the study called “Space Use by Endangered Giant Pandas” reveals that interaction between the male and two of the female pandas during the fall months, a time of year once thought to be light on interaction between the species.

The study involved three adult female pandas (Mei Mei, Zhong Zhong, and Pan Pan), one adult male panda (Chuan Chuan), and one adolescent female (Long Long).

Part of what makes this study so exciting for researchers, according to study co-author Jindong Zhang, as reported in Demanjo, is that “This was a terrific chance to get a peek into the panda’s secretive society that has been closed off to us in the past.”

The study determined that previously held beliefs that pandas preferred to be solitary or alone in the wild may not be so cut and dried. Rather than avoiding other members of their species, they seemed quite content when joined by other members of their species – even outside of traditional mating season.

In fact, the home range of these pandas overlapped on many occasions during the study indicating that these were not isolated, but intentional, meaning that the pandas, while appreciating solitude, also crave interaction with other pandas.

The study took place over the course of two years and studied various aspects of the daily lives of the pandas in questions. Three of the adults were together quite frequently over a course of several weeks during the fall, sometimes within 10 or 20 meters of each other.

They appeared to rotate between 30 different bamboo spots where they would remain until forced to find a new source of food.

GPS tracking technology has made it possible to track these pandas in order to gain valuable insights about the animal, something almost unheard of in the past due to logistical and political concerns as China is highly protective of the pandas and their cultural significance.


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