Effects of timber harvesting on Arundinaria spanostachya bamboo and feeding-site selection by giant pandas in Liziping Nature Reserve, China

Abstract

Timber harvesting can alter understory plant diversity, abundance and composition, and in turn shape behaviors of a variety of animals. By far, little is known about the effects of timber harvesting on bamboo understory and feeding-site selection by giant pandas. Here, we investigated differences in crude protein, crude fat and tannin in Arundinaria spanostachya and feeding-site selection by giant pandas in primary and secondary forests in Liziping Nature Reserve, China. One hundred and twenty plots were established in the wild, including 30 feeding-site plots and 30 control plots in primary and secondary forests respectively. The results indicated that after timber harvesting, bamboo grows denser in secondary forests, with decreased crude protein content and increased tannin content, especially in leaves. Giant pandas exhibited distinct feeding-site selection patterns in primary and secondary forests. In primary forests, giant pandas appear to randomly forage bamboo across age groups but feed more on perennial bamboo culms (⩾3yr) and less on annual bamboo culms (⩽1yr) in secondary forests. Above findings highlight the importance of conserving the primary forests in the Xiaoxiangling Mountains, and suggest that training and acclimatization of captive individuals for release should be as possible as can conducted in primary forests without human disturbance.