A Study Of The Panda Population And Conservation Strategies In Xiaoxiangling Mountains

The giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), distributed only in China and called "living fossil", has been a flagship of endangered and rare species in the world. It is loved by the people of the world since it was first discovered in 1869. No species has got more attention of the people, conservation organizations and governments in the world than the giant panda. Because of rapid increase of human population and overexploitation of forest resources, the ranges of the giant panda are shrinking, population size is declining, and habitats are fragmenting. Now they are occurring only in high mountains and steep valleys of the east edge of Qingzang plateau, i.e. Minshan, Qionglaishan, Daxiangling, Xiaoxiangling, Liangshan and Qinling. The giant panda populations living in these mountains have been separated completely. Even in one mountain system, where the giant panda is distributed, fragmentation of habitats and populations is severe.Conservation biology is a comprehensive discipline, which is related to botany, zoology, ecology, genetics, biogeography, etc. It is aiming to conserve biodiversity and habitats of organisms, assess impacts of human beings on biodiversity and develop measures preventing organisms from extinction. Objectives of conservation biology are both to study anthropological influences on biodiversity and explore effective approaches of preventing species from extinction.The results of our study of the giant panda population and its habitats, and protecting situation show that:1. Habitats of the giant panda1). Habitats of the giant panda, total area 802.04 km2, in the Xiaoxiangling Mountains are distributed in Shimian County of Ya'an municipality, Mianning County of Liangshan Prefecture, Jiulong County of Ganzi Prefecture. Habitats of the giant panda in Shimian are the largest with 54.48% of total area and that of Jiulong County the smallest with 4.40%.2). Vegetation of the Xiaoxiangling is Chuan-Dian-Qian (Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou) forests, subtropical evergreen forests by Chinese Vegetation Types. The basic vegetation is evergreen forests and distributed under 2200 m of elevation. Temperate conifer and broad-leaf mixed forests are between 2200 m - 2400 m. Within this zone most of the species are spruce, hemlock, maple. Cold-temperate conifer forests are distributed between 2400 m - 3800 m (in some area to 4800 m). Dominant species are Lijiang spruce (Abies georgei), Changbao fir (Abies georgei), Chuan-Dian fir (Abies forrestii) and fir (Abies faberi) in pure or mixed style. Understories are cold-temperate evergreen scrubs consisting of cold arrow bamboo and rhododendron species. Between 3800 m (or 4000 m) - 4500 m are distributed alpine scrubs and meadows. There are totally 15 vegetation styles, 21 substyles, 30 formation group and 71 formation.3). There are 16 species of bamboo in Xiaoxiangling. They are , respectively, Yushannia lineolata Yi, Y. glauca Yi et Long, Y. violascens (Keng) Yi, Y. cava Yi, Y. maculata Yi, Fargesia ferax (Keng) Yi, F. dulcicula Yi, F. maluo Yi, F. jiulongensis Yi, F. adpressa Yi, F. exposita Yi, F. canaliculata Yi, F. parvifolia Yi, F. pauciflora Yi, Bashania fargesii Keng f. et Yi, B. spanostachya Yi. The range of 9 dominant species of bamboo is 414.82 km2. Among them, Y. lineolata and F. ferax are the most abundant with 51.39% and 16.51% of total area of all of the bamboo species. Y. lineolata and Y. cava make of the diet of the giant panda in Xiaoxiangling. Giant pandas like to take bamboo stems, which is 58.42% of all parts. Percentages of bamboo leaves and shoots in panda's diet are, respectively, 25.74% and 15.84%. On the other hand, F, dulcicula (40 indiv./ m2) and Y. violascens (42 indiv./ m2) have the highest density. Fargesia ferax, Y. violascens and F. dulcicula have the highest heights and diameter. But F. dulcicula and Y. glauca grow the best. Giant pandas takemore Y. lineolata and Y. cava, which grow well. In these bamboo forests, the proportion of shoots and juveniles is more than that of dead bamboo. 2. Population size1). Three methods are used to est...