80 Percent of Panda Habitat Damaged By Earthquake

17 June 2008 -- Great pandas have been a boon to zoos that can afford them, but they have raised visitors' expectations and put pressure on smaller zoos to show off
Forestry officials in China say they estimate that the powerful May 12 earthquake destroyed or damaged more than 80 percent of the giant panda's remaining habitat.

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Giant panda: Photo by Chi King (CC)

A senior forestry official told a Hong Kong newspaper the "South China Morning Post" that about two-thirds of the wild population is likely dead, injured or facing starvation.

Last week, China's State Forestry Administration had said it lacked first-hand information about how the quake affected the endangered animals. Officials said landslides have made areas where they live too difficult and dangerous to reach.

About 1,600 of the animals remain in the wild, mostly in steep, bamboo-covered mountains in Sichuan province.

At least one captive panda from the Wolong nature reserve has already been found dead and another is missing.

A strong earthquake in Sichuan province in the 1970s was followed by widespread blossoming of bamboo - the giant panda's exclusive source of food. Bamboo dies after it flowers, so the animals suffered a serious food shortage.

Source: VOA News