Recently, staff from the Changqing National Nature Reserve in Shaanxi Province found a moving image of a healthy adult brown giant panda when they were sorting out the data of the 2024 spring giant panda and habitat survey.
The photo location of the brown giant panda is located in the Baiyangping area of the reserve, about 1,500 meters above sea level, and the shooting time is January 17, 2024.
The brown panda is first attracted by the bright light of the infrared camera at night. After lingering around for a moment, the camera caught it up close and personal pacing in the snow.
According to the staff of the reserve, this is the first time in 6 years that the brown giant panda has been photographed in the Changqing Reserve after March 2018; It is also the 11th time that wild brown giant pandas have been found in the Qinling area.
The giant panda, a national treasure, has long been known for its iconic black and white coat color. However, in the wild giant panda population in the Qinling Mountains, a rare mutant of coat color has emerged - the brown-white giant panda (brown giant panda).
In 1985, a female brown giant panda "Dandan" was first discovered and rescued in the Foping Nature Reserve in Shaanxi Province, and later died of illness in 2000.
In 2009, the male brown giant panda "Qizai" was found in the Foping Reserve and later rescued to the Louguantai Rare Wildlife Rescue and Breeding Center in Shaanxi Province.
So far, there are only 7 cases of brown giant pandas with physical or photographed objects, of which 3 cases are from Foping County, Hanzhong, Shaanxi, 2 cases are from Hanzhongyang County, Shaanxi, and 1 case each from Taibai in Baoji and Zhouzhi in Xi'an. At present, this unusual brown-and-white fur phenotype of giant pandas is all found in the Qinling mountain population.
For a long time, the unusual brown and white coat color of the brown giant panda has aroused the public's curiosity, and the "Seven Boys" as a representative of the brown panda have always attracted public attention, in fact, researchers have been exploring this field. On March 5, 2024, the team of Academician Wei Fuwen of the Chinese Academy of Sciences published research results on brown giant pandas in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) of the United States, showing that the deletion mutation of the Bace2 gene causes the original black hair to appear brown.
Brown giant panda seven cubs
There are pandas that can take color photos!