Wolong Evacuates Most Pandas

        With researchers' hard work and overcoming of Three Difficulties in giant panda's breeding(difficulty with fertility, difficulty in mating, low survival rate), the captive population of China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda increases from 10 in the 1990s to 130 at the end of 2007 and becomes the world's biggest population in captivity.  The pandas are mainly at Wolong Hetaoping Base and Ya'an Bifengxia Base.  In 2007, the research center started the construction of Huangcaoping Base at Wolong.
        The great Wenchuan earthquake on May 12th brings a severe damage to Hetaoping Base. In the 32 enclosures, 18 are completely destroyed and another 14 seriously.  All the infrastructures, such as transportation, water, electricity, communications and internet, are crippled.  The 63 pandas at the base are in the face of food and enclosure shortages.  Besides, the construction of Huangcaoping Base has to stop and reintroduction of captive giant pandas has to intermit.
        After the earthquake, Wolong National Nature Reserve Administration Bureau founded Headquarter for Earthquake Resistance and Disaster Relief quickly.  Under the leadership of the State Forestry Bureau and Sichuan Forestry Department, with the help and support from organizations, societies, counterparts, such as China Wildlife Conservation Association, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Fengtongzai Nature Reserve Administration Bureau, the staff of the research center unite and undertake the work of search, salvation and transferring the giant pandas in captivity rapidly.  With one month's hard work, they find 5 missing pandas and successfully transfer 14 pandas, including 8 Olympic pandas.  At present, there have been 47 captive giant pandas at Wolong except one dead and one missing.
        At present, the experts of Geographical Disaster Investigation Group of Sichuan Land and Resource Department have evaluated the geography of Hetaoping and conclude that Hetaoping has a great potential safety risk.  It threats the safety of both the giant pandas and staff.  To assure the safety of the giant pandas, the research center makes the evacuation plan for the giant pandas at Hetaoping Base and gets approval after reporting to the State Forestry Bureau and Sichuan Forestry Department.  According to the plan, 13 pandas have been transferred to Ya'an Bifengxia Base on June 18th and another 19 will foster temporarily at counterparts which fulfill the giant pandas' rearing condition, such as Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Fuzhou Research Center for the Giant Panda, Guangzhou Xiangjiang Safari Park.
        The research center has started building 17 temporary enclosures at Bifengxia Base and is striving for transferring 27 giant pandas at Wolong to Bifengxia Base at appropriate time during one month.  The 20 fixed enclosures in construction will be finished in the middle of this October.  At that time, all the giant pandas from Wolong will move into these enclosures.  The 7 cubs born in 2007 will also been transferred to the safe place during the government of Wolong Town and Wolong Primary School.
        The over 20 years' development and experience of China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda proves that the climate, environment and vegetation of Wolong are very propitious to developing the giant panda' population in captivity, reintroducing the captive to the wild, and so on.  Even though the earthquake brings a great damage to both Wolong and the giant panda, we believe, with the support of the people all over the country, with the help of the people and organizations who concern the giant panda, we can build a more beautiful home for the giant panda in two to three years.