Scared pandas may need counseling after Sichuan quake
Xinhua 2013-04-23 08:50
Pandas at the Bifengxia panda base in Sichuan climbed into the trees and refused to come down for several hours after the quake. (Photo/CFP)
The 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck southwest China's Sichuan province and has so far claimed 186 lives and injured over 11,000 has also greatly affected the province's endangered giant pandas.
Although no deaths or injuries of pandas have been reported, the rare species at the Bifengxia panda base, located 50 kilometers away from the epicenter in Longmen county, Ya'an city, were found to have been scared by the quake.
In 1869, a French missionary named Armand David discovered the giant panda in the nearby Baoxing county, making the black and white bears known to the world.
According to a video captured by the camera surveillance, when the quake occurred at 8:02am on Saturday, the pandas were initially stunned, with some climbing high into the trees, and others fleeing somewhere they believed safe, said Heng Yi, a spokesman with the base.
"The daring ones remained calm, while the timid ones were in shock," he said, adding the pandas will now need extra care and even psychological therapy after the quake.
Breeders have provided an abundant supply of food for the pandas to assure them that nothing is wrong, and for the young cubs who were scared, breeders will play with them to ease their minds, said a director surnamed Wang in charge of animal management at the base.
"Being in close contact with the breeders will help comfort the pandas," said Wang.
There are 61 giant pandas at the base and nearly half of them from the Wolong Natural Reserve which relocated the animals in 2008, when the devastating 8.0-magnitude earthquake struck the area and left 87,000 people dead or missing.
People in Wolong also felt the tremor on Saturday but no human or panda casualties have been reported, said Zhang Hemin, chief of Wolong Natural Reserve.
Apart from Bifengxia and Wolong, Fengtongzhai Natural Reserve, located in northeastern Baoxing county and 80 km away from the epicenter of Lushan, is also a habitat for wild pandas with over 40 pandas.
Quake-triggered landslides disrupted the road traffic and water supply of the reserve, and the condition of the pandas is still unknown.
Zuo Guangyuan, chief of the management bureau of the Fengtongzhai Natural Reserve, said they have yet to get through to nine of their workers, and a special team has been sent to verify the condition of the animals.
No dead or injured pandas had been found so far, but aftershocks and potential subsequent disasters may threaten their safety, said Zuo.
