Conservation of the red panda Ailurus fulgens

Abstract

The red panda Ailurus fulgens is a species of special interest because it is taxonomically distinct (probably a monotypic subfamily) and may be threatened with extinction, at least in the Himalayan portion of its range. During a two-year study in Langtang National Park, Nepal, red pandas were habitat specialists that preferred fir-jhapra bamboo forests between 2800 and 3900 m (92% of radio locations of three males and three females). A GIS analysis estimated that this forest type comprises only 6% of the park and thus, given an estimated ecological density of 1 adult/2·9 km 2, there were probably fewer than 40 adult pandas in the park, isolated into four or more populations. The pandas had low fecundity (typically one cub/female/year) and high mortality. Among 12–13 cubs recorded, only three survived beyond six months; four of nine known adults died during the study. Most deaths from known causes (57%) were human-related, and probably connected to the presence of cattle herders and dogs in the area during the monsoon birth season. Leaves of a single bamboo species, jhapra (probably Himalaya-calamus falconeri), comprised 54–100% of the diet seasonally, with bamboo shoots, Sorbus fruits and mushrooms comprising the balance. This low-quality diet may explain why red pandas were active throughout the day and night, 56% of the time overall. Food competition between livestock and pandas may not be important: chauri (yak-cattle hybrids) consumed bamboo leaves at a lower height on the plants than pandas, but may have depressed bamboo abundance by trampling. Given the vulnerable state of Langtang's red