Scientists hoping to breed the world’s most iconic endangered species, the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), have always faced their own reality of “tough love.” Female pandas ovulate just once a year and have a two– to three-day window for conceiving. Beyond the perfect timing required, there is the compatibility challenge. Breeding pairs are typically chosen based on the compatibility of their genetics. Unfortunately, simply putting a male and female in a room together does not always result in a cub. Researchers have even turned to Viagra and “panda porn” to get the finicky bears in the mood.
Now, a team of eight researchers — including two with Oregon Zoo ties — have revealed that successful breeding and cub survival significantly depend on one factor: whether or not the mom and dad choose each other. The findings are published on 15 December in the journal Nature Communications.
Researcher Meghan Martin-Wintle and colleagues ran an experiment that allowed 40 pandas in a Chinese zoo to choose between two potential mates. Females could indicate which partner they preferred by scent marking, chirping and interactions through a mesh barrier. Males were given the same choice.
When the panda feelings were mutual, reproductive success was 80 percent higher than with pairs that did not have mutual mate preference.
“Giant pandas number fewer than 2,000 in the wild. If we can produce more individuals through these kinds of programmes, we’ll have a larger surplus for reintroduction,” Martin-Wintle said.
As of 2012, the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums reported that 31 of the 33 animals classified as Extinct in the Wild on the IUCN Red List are actively captive-bred in zoos and aquariums. Some species, such as the California condor, wouldn’t exist today if it weren’t for captive breeding. The giant panda is classified as Endangered according the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ .
The study’s findings mirrored what Martin-Wintle along with Oregon Zoo deputy conservation manager David Shepherdson and others had previously discovered in Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits, an endangered Pacific Northwest native that the Oregon Zoo has successfully bred and reintroduced.
“Zoos are in a unique position to protect endangered species, captive breeding being only one example of how we can help. Of course, breeding programmes can only be successful if we have suitable and safe habitat to reintroduce animals into,” said Shepherdson.
“The take-home message is that we should probably conduct more of this kind of research with other conservation breeding programs in other species,” Martin-Wintle said.
The study was made possible in part by a Future for Wildlife grant awarded by the Oregon Zoo Foundation in 2011.
Oregon Zoo has partnered up with Portland State University. This partnership provides graduate students in Biology a research opportunity. The research conducted can lead to important changes in the way we should understand and approach saving endangered species.
Pandas play in their with snow enriched enclosure at the San Diego Zoo:
(Source: Oregon Zoo media release, 14.12.2015; San Diego Zoo YouTube channel)