Endangered red pandas move to Birmingham Nature Centre

Two red panda cubs from Bristol Zoo have recently moved to Birmingham Nature Centre. The cubs, born at Bristol Zoo Gardens in June 2003, are part of a conservation breeding programme to increase numbers and secure their long-term future. This move will expand the breeding programme and help develop further the groups of red panda around the UK.

This species is highly endangered in the wild, suffering population decreases of around 40% in China over the last 50 years. Born on Father’s Day 2003, Tenzing and Babu, were named after famous Himalayan Sherpas and have spent most of there days exploring their enclosure outside Twilight World. Panda parents, Lang Tang and Jiao Jiao, successfully reared twin cubs in May 1999. These twins, Garjeko and Bijuli, went to Port Lympne Zoo in April 2000 to take part in a new conservation breeding programme.

John Partridge, Assistant Curator at Bristol Zoo Gardens, said: ‘Moving animals on to new homes is always touched by a little sadness; the teams that manage Bebu and Tenzig have put 100% into their care and have got to know their characters. However, the exciting part of conservation breeding is that we play an active role in preserving the future of these beautiful and endangered species’.

Red pandas are endangered in the wild as much of their habitat and bamboo food supply is being destroyed by human activities. The loss of the forest continues at an alarming rate, due to the demand for land by increasing human populations in China and Nepal. Red pandas are also killed by dogs and hunted by poachers for the fur trade.