Very little is known about the social behavior of giant pandas. It has been long thought that giant pandas prefer a solitary life, but a new research suggests that pandas also spend time with friends while in the wild.
The latest study conducted by researchers at the Michigan State University (MSU) shows that pandas are very elusive creatures, and it is very hard to observe them in the wild. The researchers tracked down five giant pandas in the wild with the help of GPS collars.
Vanessa Hull, a research associate at MSU's Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability (CSIS), says that three female adults, one young female and a male adult were captured and collared. All the pandas were then tracked from 2010 to 2012 in the Wolong Nature Reserve in China.
The study is one of the first to involve GPS collars on wild giant pandas as the Chinese government is very protective of the endangered species and previously did not allow the use of GPS collars on the pandas. However, GPS collars have helped scientists to observe the movements of the animals and how they interact with each other.
It was previously believed that pandas were loners. However, the researchers found that three of the five pandas grouped together sometimes. Data collected from the GPS collars also revealed that these three pandas were often found in one part of the forest for some weeks in fall and also outside the mating season.
Hull says the pandas can be found in one place for a long period. Such behavior of the pandas suggests that they often spend time with their friends.
"This might be evidence that pandas are not as solitary as [they were] once widely believed [to be]," said Jindong Zhang, a postdoctoral researcher at CSIS, who is also a co-author of the study.
The male panda moved over to a bigger area in the forest. Such movement of the male panda was probably to find more females to mate with in the forest.
Previous studies have revealed that pandas move from one area to another in search of food. However, as Hull explains, pandas also have a core area where they stay in. Data shows that pandas return to their core regions even after six months of staying out, proving how pandas have good memory.
The study is significant as it gives one of the first insights into the social behavior of the giant pandas.
Photo: Chi King | Flickr
