Why do they need you?

The Chinese government has established more than 50 panda reserves, but only around 61 percent of the country’s giant panda population is protected by these reserves. The latest census in 2014 found that there were 1,864 giant pandas in the wild.  In the past decade, giant panda numbers have risen by 17 percent. While this increase may sound like a lot, the total number of giant pandas is still low for breeding and maintaining a viable population.

Panda mothers like to use large tree hollows for their dens.  Logging in established forests removes these old-growth trees, leaving pandas less-suitable denning areas. Fragmented habitats isolate small populations of giant pandas and prevent them from mixing and breeding.

How is Zoo Atlanta helping?

• Zoo Atlanta has contributed over $16 million for the conservation of giant pandas in China, making this our most significant financial investment in wildlife conservation. The majority of these funds are used for projects for wild giant pandas, and eight different nature reserves have been supported with these funds.
• The giant pandas at Zoo Atlanta are on loan from China. The Zoo pays an annual loan fee for the pandas, and this money is used for giant panda conservation.
• Projects fall under three categories: research, infrastructure, and management. Examples of giant panda conservation activities supported by Zoo Atlanta include research on genetic diversity, construction of protection stations, reserve management, and reforestation projects, and purchase of equipment used by reserve staff to census and monitor panda populations.

Our Team

How can you help save the pandas?

• • Support Zoo Atlanta by visiting, becoming a Member or donating! Funding for giant panda conservation and research is greatly supported by just that!
  • Even though we may not have wild pandas here in Georgia, we can help protect their black bear counterparts by:
    • Recognizing wild areas with sparse human interference are the most vital habitat for black bears and by protecting those areas, we can protect native wildlife like black bears.
    • Keeping wild bears wild!  Human actions have a big impact on wild bears. If you encounter a bear in the wild, give it plenty of space and never approach or feed it. 

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Want to learn more?

Check out these links:

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

Research/conservation papers