Re-wilding red pandas: Darjeeling zoo attempts country’s first augmentation of endangered mammal in the wild
The HinduThe Singalila National Park, the highest protected area in West Bengal, will soon get new denizens. In the first re-wilding programme of red pandas in India, the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park has started an ambitious programme to release 20 of these furry mammals in about five years to the forests. Basavaraj Holeyachi, Director of zoological park who is at the centre of the Red Panda Augmentation Programme, says conservation breeding of red pandas is only one part of the programme. Selection of animals to be released in the wild, breaking their food association with humans and tagging the animals released in the wild are crucial factors in re-wilding of the red panda population, he adds. Categorised as an endangered species as per IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, red pandas are shy, solitary and arboreal animals and considered an indicator species for ecological change.
History of this topic
International Red Panda Day 2021: Lesser-known Facts About the Endangered Species
News 18
Red Panda Gives Birth to Cub at Darjeeling Zoo, Picture Goes Viral
News 18)
Adorable Wild Giant Pandas No Longer 'Endangered' in China
News 18)
In Darjeeling's Singalila National Park, red pandas and pangolins are being trafficked into extinction
Firstpost
Rare red panda born in Berlin as part of global breeding program
India TodayDiscover Related
Giant Pandas Arrive in Washington, D.C., but Won't Be Ready for Public Debut Until January
Associated Press
