Chinanews, Xi’an, Dec. 21 – “Caves for pandas living in Qinling Mountains actually form ‘panda villages’ and every panda is a ‘villager’,” said Yong Yange, a renowned panda expert who had engaged in scientific research in Foping National Nature Reserve for a very long time.

 

A grand investigation on those caves was launched, carried out by Yong and other 15 Chinese scientists in 2004. They have carefully monitored 99 caves where wild pandas lived with their baby cubs, in hopes of identifing their living habits.

 

Experts find that pandas give birth to their cubs in stone caves rather than tree holes in Qinling Mountains. These stone caves are scattered in a narrow area, which indicates they may lead a collective life. “In those ‘prosperous’ panda villages, there are 12 panda caves in an area of 2 sq km,” said Yong.

 

Yong said that panda villages have their own ways of development. Female cubs will be dispelled from the village when they are 2 years old. “In such a way panda clans avoid inbreeding,” he said. “Male cubs will still stay in the village, awaiting the arrival of female pandas.”

 

Experts believe there are at least 7 panda villages in the nature reserve, each composed of 10-12 pandas.