In 1957 the Chinese government decided it was high time to start looking into protecting their revered animal. In 1963 the Chinese government started the first giant panda reserve and since has set aside a total of 10 panda reservations (see map)

The Wolong (translated as sleepy dragon) Nature Reserve, or sometimes known as "Wolong Giant Panda Reserve," is probably the most important giant panda reserve and at 785 square miles (2,035 sq. km) Wolong Nature Reserve is the largest giant panda reserve in the world. It is situated in the heart of the giant panda range at an elevation of 6,500 feet (1.980 cm).

The Ministry of Forestry of PRC and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) formulated the long-term Giant Panda Management Plan up until 1989. In the early 1990's it is known that approximately 140 giant pandas populated the reserve. Even though this is a reserve, the poaching and forestry activity continues which results in a steady decline of the giant panda population within the "protective" reserve.

Today, the Wolong Giant Panda Reserve Center has been turned into the Giant Panda Breeding Center focusing primarily on continuing studies of artificial breeding in the hopes that they may successfully achieve live births of giant pandas which, after the cub reaches maturity, will be released into the forests. The other primary function of the Reserve is bamboo ecology. Most of the previous research is now being carried out in other giant panda reserves such as the one in Qinling Mountains of Shaanxi Province.

The Wolong Giant Panda Reserve Center basically takes care of giant pandas under three situations:
1. When giant pandas are brought up from captive breeding,
2. When giant pandas are somehow separated or are rescued from injury, and have lost the ability to survive if released back to the wild,
3. When a giant panda is ready to be released back into the wild from other reserves.
The Wolong Giant Panda Reserve Center offers two types of accommodations for the giant pandas:
1. Captive Cages:
Most of the giant pandas stay individually in the captive cages. They are simply large enclosures, each consisting of an in-door room and an out-door courtyard.
2. Semi-Nature Enclosures:
The semi-nature enclosures are very large wild areas but protected by border fences. Giant pandas that will soon be released back to the wild will be put in the semi-nature enclosures for a period of time sufficient enough for them to adapt to the natural environment. Although food still has to be provided, the giant pandas will sleep there, eat there and recover their natural survival skills until they can be safely released back into the wild.
A hike of approximately five hundred meters (~550 yards) up hill from the Giant Panda Reserve Center you will come to Wuyipeng which was once part of the Giant Panda Reserve Center research facility. It was intentionally located closer to the habitat of the Giant Panda to allow the researchers a more convenient access to the natural habitat. Due to the relocation of the many research projects to other Giant Panda Reserves, Wuyipeng is no long fully functioning. However, weather statistics are still being recorded daily to provided limited information for the existing Giant Panda Breeding Center.

In 1980 a massive effort to study and assist the giant panda took place at Wolong Nature Reserve and initially lasted for five years. This effort was a joint effort by the World Wildlife Fund and the Chinese government.

The lead giant panda researcher was Professor Hu Jinchu of Nanchong Teacher's College and is considered to be the top naturalist in Sichuan, China. He was assisted by George Schaller who was, at the time the director of the New York Zoological Society's Conservation (who provided major funding) called Wildlife Conservation International.

During the study the researchers learned a great deal about the nutritional value and content of the bamboo, the chief food of the giant panda, and how bamboo is affected by the changing seasons. During their research they came up with an emergency plan to deal with that natural disasters, such as the sudden flowering and subsequent die-offs of the bamboo. Also studied was the giant panda's exclusive taste for the bamboo.

Because the giant panda is very hard to spot in the wild the giant pandas' behavior and daily movements were tracked and studied with the use of radio-monitoring collars. Giant pandas were trapped by the researchers in legal non-harming traps, tranquilized then weighed, measured and other pertinent data was collected. The giant panda was then set free. Each collar emitted a distinct tone seperate from all other collared giant pandas and could be detected by receivers carried by the researchers several miles away. This way the researchers could track one or more individual giant pandas through it's daily movements without directly interfering with them and causing the giant pandas to deviate from their natural movements and habits.

Researchers defined problems in the environment that threatened giant pandas and suggested solutions. The main purpose of the project was to learn to how best to help the giant pandas continue as a living species and thus avoiding extinction.

Researchers spent many hours alone tracking the giant pandas throughout the wilderness. They traced giant panda footprints in the snow onto plastic sheets. By noting special features, they were able to identify each giant panda by its footprint. This enabled the researchers to track the Giant Pandas learning were they ate and slept and individual habits.

As previously mentioned, giant pandas are difficult to spot in the wilderness, so researchers also looked for giant panda droppings, as well as the size and length of bamboo stem fragments in the dropping samples collected. The length helped the scientists determine the size of the giant pandas in the area since the larger the giant panda the larger the fragments of bamboo stalks.

Li-Li, one of the giant panda females currently living at Wolong was brought from the Bejing Zoo and placed at the Wolong Breeding Center in 1980 in the hope that she would breed. She produced the first ever cub at Wolong Nature Reserve in 1986. The cub, named Lan Tian, despite being in one of the best giant panda veterinary facilities only lived until 1990.

 Much of what we currently know about the giant panda is credited to the Wolong Nature Reserve. However, the researchers and scientists' exhaustive research has not been without controversy. Mr. Schaller who has paid for part of the research, has criticized the WWF for not doing enough to actually save the giant panda. Schaller's objection was that the WWF would not force the Chinese government to help preserve the giant pandas in the wild by simply leaving them and their habitat alone. Schaller further argued that if the WWF would not have spent the money that was used for building the "vastly underused" Wolong Nature Reserve for research and breeding but rather spent that money convincing the Chinese government to keep the human presence away from those areas currently inhabited by the giant panda and to put a stop to the poaching, the giant panda may indeed survive without further human intervention. The WWF's position on this matter was that it was the only way to gain access to China and the giant panda.

Even so, the WWF has done more to protect the giant pandas than any other group. In 1958 the WWF, concerned with the saving of endangered species, adopted the giant panda as their international logo.

The Giant Panda Breeding Center was established strictly for wildlife and habitat conservation purposes, and not as tourist attractions. There are no regular visiting programs or on-site tour guides. Special arrangements and applications to the local governmental department is required in order to visit the center.

World Wide Fund For Nature Hong Kong (WWF Hong Kong), the major nature conservation organization in Hong Kong, occasionally will arrange special overseas ecotours to Wolong for their members.

Located: 30º45' to 31º25'N; 102º52' to 103º25'E
Established 1975, 207,210 hectares
Core area: 119,460 hectares
Buffer zone: 53,020 hectares
Altitude: +1,200 to +6,250 meters (+3,936.96 - +20,505 feet)
Biosphere Reserve, IUCN Category IV

Hectares: A unit of land measure equal to 100 acres or 10,000 square meters; equivalent to 2,471 acres.

Wolong Nature Reserve is located approximately 120km (74 miles) northwest of Chengdu in Wenchuan County of Sichuan Province, and covering an area of just over 207 thousand hectares,and includes the Giant Panda Research Center. The nature reserve covers an area of over 2,000 sq km and Wolong Nature Reserve was established primarily to protect the habitat of the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), China's most famous endemic species, but is also rich in other mammals, birds and reptiles, with 19% of the country's animal species represented (Li and Zhao 1989). Apart from the panda, the 46 mammals inhabiting Wolong include the takin (Budorcas taxicolor), the golden snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana), the white-lipped deer (Cervus albirostris) and the clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa), all of which are classified Level 1 for state protection (Li and Zhao 1989, Mackinnon et al. 1996).

The 225 bird species (Li and Zhao 1989) include a number of rare pheasants which are probably dependent on the panda reserves for their survival (Mackinnon et al. 1996). The reserve also contains over 3,000 plant species, including 667 hectares of rare dove tree (Davidia involucrata) forest (Li and Zhao 1989).

The UN has declared Wolong an international biosphere preserve and in addition to the wealth of fauna, 4,000 different types of plants are believed to grow here.
Wolong Nature Reserve is a key nature preservation area designed primarily to protect and reproduce the giant panda. In 1982, it was admitted by the UNESCO to be part of "the International Reserve Net of Man and Biosphere." Lying on the complicated land formations of transition area from the Qinghai and Tibet Plateau to the Sichuan Basin, and with a cool climate, it's endowed with favorable conditions for the preservation and reproduction of a number of living beings.

In the Reserve, there are over 4,000 species of plants, which have a very conspicuous vertical spectrum of vegetation. It differs with different elevations above sea level. Located 1,155-2,070 meters above sea level is the belt of broad-leaf trees; 2,070-2,500 meters, mixed broad-leaf and coniferous trees; 2,500-3,800 meters, coniferous trees with fir as the main plant; over 3,800 meters, high mountain grassy marshland; more than 4,400 meters, shifting stone shoals, with only snow lotus and a few other plants; over 4,600 meters, nothing but snow.

The Wolong Nature Reserve is gifted with numerous types of ancient and precious and rare trees, some of which were imported, i.e. Japanese larch, the U.S pine, European dragon spruce etc. Among the floras are over 200 kinds of medicinal materials including the most famous ones: the bulb of fritillary, the tuber of elevated gastrodia, Chinese caterpillar fungus, the bark of eucommia etc. It abounds in bamboos which are the favorite feed of the grand panda.

The Wolong Nature Reserve is also a world of flowers. Fifteen types of azalea have been discovered. In autumn, myriad blossoms and tree leaves of various colors decorate the mountains and forests like a series of brilliant and colorful paintings.

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

The giant panda is beloved by people from all over the world. It is a symbol of world biodiversity, conservation, peace and friendship. The giant panda is also nature's gift to Chengdu and the province of Sichuan. It is a special and highly valued resource in Chengdu. All local and foreign visitors enjoy the beauty of giant pandas. They are also deeply concerned with the current status and future of giant pandas.

One of the highlights of any visit to Chengdu, the Research Base is they help visitors to become familiar with Chengdu and giant pandas. Visitors are also educated about environmental protection and science.

Giant pandas at the Chengdu Research Base live in large naturalistic habitats, which help the visitor to understand how these animals live in the wild. It is an excellent recreational area and a highlight of any visit to Chengdu.

The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding is located in the northern suburb of Chengdu on Futou Hill. It is 10km from downtown Chengdu, and can be reached by the Panda Road.

The Research Base is one of the important centers in China for the captive conservation of giant pandas. The current goal is to increase the captive population of giant pandas. The ultimate goal is to reintroduce giant pandas to the wild. To achieve this goal certain pandas will be raised in such a way as to provide them with the necessary skills to survive in the wild. Reintroduction of captive animals to the wild will both increase the number of individuals and the genetic diversity of the wild population. The Research Base hopes to help ensure the survival of giant pandas and increase the chances for giant pandas to coexist with humankind.

The Chengdu Municipal Government decided to establish the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in March 1987. Leaders of the Central Government, Provincial Government, and Municipal Government, as well as people from foreign countries, have all contributed to building the Research Base. The Research Base was built by the Chengdu Garden Bureau.

The construction of the Research Base and its achievements exemplify the Chinese government's high level of concern, goals and willingness to take responsibility for environmental protection. The Research Base also represents China's highest goals for conservation and wildlife management. The Chinese goverment's promise to the international society, when it signed a contract to conserve biodiversity, has been partially fufilled with the construction of the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding promotes Chengdu's captive population.

Over a decade of construction has resulted in the completion of the first and second phases of development. The first and second phases encompass an area of 37 hectares and contain: research buildings, laboratories, veterinary facilities, welcoming center, and the Giant Panda Museum, which provides interesting educational information about a variety of species native to China. Additionally the Research Base has constructed naturalistic enclosures for giant pandas, red pandas and black-necked cranes. The total investment to date is 50 million RMB (about 6.1 million U.S. dollars).

In 1993, the Chengdu Municial Goverment agreed with the Chengdu Tourism Bureau's plan to build the third phase of the project covering an area of 240 hectares now known as the China Panda City in Chengdu. The third phase involved construction of enclosures which simulate the wild habitat of giant pandas. The purpose of these enclosures is to prepare captive-born pandas for reintroduction into the wild. The second part of the China Panda City is a tourism development area, which will be 170 hectares in size. The tourism development area will be built by Chengdu Tourism Bureau.

Many talented and knowledgeable scientists work at the Research Base, which has the most technologically advanced facilities in China. Scientific ideas and information are exchanged and cooperative research is conducted between experts at the Research Base, scientists in universities and research institutions throughout China and other countries. Several breakthroughs have been made by Research Base scientists in basic and applied research on endangered species, like the giant panda. Fifty of these projects have won national, provincial, and municipal Science Technology Awards. Some of these research projects are the most advanced in the world, such as rearing of twin cubs by one mother, DNA paternity determination, endangered species sperm-banking, and etiology and prevention for hemorrighic entertis. In 1993 and 1997, Chengdu hosted two majorPanda Symposias.

The Research Base and the Chengdu Zoo currently house 21 giant pandas, over 20 red pandas, black-necked cranes, and white storks. There are 14 species of bamboo, and 300 other plant species at the Research Base. Ninety species of birds also make their home here.

Since 1963-1997, 197 giant panda cubs in 131 litters were born in captivity in Chengdu. Of these cubs, 27 cubs have survived. Mei Mei a female panda from Chengdu has been described as a "supermom," because she gave birth to 11 cubs in nine litters, of which seven cubs survived. Her daughter Qing Qing surpassed her by giving birth to 10 cubs in six litters, and the research base became reputed as the "hometown" of giant pandas. The overall survival rate of captive born giant pandas is 59.4%. The overall survival rate for cubs to the age of three years is 35.5% (in Chengdu this survival rate is 48.8%).

The Research Base has welcomed many levels of goverment officials and over 100,000 visitors from China. As a result of these achievements, the Research Base has been highly praised by visitors. Also as a result of these achievements, the Research Base received the following awards:

1) Global 500 Award from the United Nations Enviromental Planning Department;
2) China's Gold Medal for scientific technology of plants, which is the highest award given for China's enviromental protection, and
3) the Excellent National Project for Comprehensive Improvement of Environment Award.

Many types of bamboo, trees, and flowers thrive at the Research Base. Several species of birds also make their home there. The human-made structures have been designed to blend in well with the natural scenery. Endangered species such as giant pandas, red pandas, and black-necked cranes reproduce well at the Research Base. Eighty-five percent of the habitat for endangered species native to China. Eighty-five percent of the wild panda population resides in Sichuan. Wild giant pandas can be found in the Chengdu governed areas of Chongzhou, Dujiangyan, Dayi, Pengzhou, and Qionglai.

The Giant Panda Museum was established in 1992. This is the only museum in the world which focuses entirely on the critically endangered giant panda. In addition to the Giant Panda Museum, a Batterfly and Vertebrate Museum have also recently been opened. These three separate museums work collectively to educate visitors. The three museums occupy a total area 12,450 square feet and hold preserved specimens from 2140 species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, and fossils. Many of the species on exhibit are books from China and other countries. This is a comprehensive museum which educates visitors on full range of tropics including: biodiversity, conservation, reproduction, and wildlife husbandry. It is internationally recognized that there are two key methods involved in the conservation of endangered species:

1) protection and preservation of wild habitat, and
2) establishment and maintenance of a self-sustaining survived.

The Chengdu Research Base and the Chengdu Zoo jointly house 33% of the captive giant panda embryo transfer and genome resource banking for endangered species that are currently being focused on. Many famous Chinese scientists are conducting preliminary research in this laboratory on giant panda embryo transfer, and have obtained some significant results.