|
|
At Memphis Zoo, Scientists Ponder Panda Chow |
|
John Pickrell for National Geographic News |
| April 30, 2003 |
|
View a photo gallery of the pandas' journey from China to the Memphis Zoo. Go >> In this third of five articles for Panda Week (details in side bar), National Geographic News focuses on the science behind the two newest guest pandas in the United States, Le Le and Ya Ya, on a ten-year exchange program from China to Memphis Zoo, Tennessee. Researchers from five universities will be studying the new pandas to learn more about the species' nutritional ecology and foraging strategy. Memphis Zoo visitors are booking tickets and lining up this week to grab a peek at Le Le and Ya Ya, the newest residents of the zoo's new U.S. $16 million-dollar exhibit. However, the bears are not solely a visitor attraction. Researchers from five universities are embarking on complementary research projects to gather information about the nutritional ecology and foraging strategy of the species. The zoo has paid U.S. $10 million to the Chinese authorities for a 10-year loan. Lending pandas to other nations is not primarily a money-making venture, says Robert Sikes, University of Arkansas at Little Rock ecologist studying the pair. "Research is a fundamental aspect of any loan," and is designed to facilitate management and conservation of this highly endangered species, he said. Essential Study New projects linked with the Memphis Zoo and field study areas in China's Qinling Mountains are focusing primarily on bamboo—the panda's low energy, yet dependable, food source. Collaborating scientists are studying which bamboo Le Le and Ya Ya prefer, what times of year they eat them, how best to serve up that bamboo in captivity, how much energy the pair get from the bamboo, and how panda foraging behavior can affect the growth of wild bamboo. "This is a very promising area of inquiry," said Donald G. Lindberg, head of the office of panda conservation at San Diego Zoo in California. "Bamboo comes in many varieties, and pandas consume some more than others. They also shift seasonally in the parts of plants consumed." Bamboo is critically important for pandas, and knowing the amount of energy available from it in panda habitats, especially fragmented ones, could prove to be crucial to survival of the species, he said. Lindberg estimates that 80 research projects have been, or are being conducted on the four panda pairs at U.S. zoos. (The San Diego Zoo, the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington D.C. and Zoo Atlanta, in Georgia, also have pandas.) A total of nine panda pairs are on exhibit outside of China. "Pandas are notoriously difficult to study in the wild… . They live in steep, rugged mountains amongst thick patches of bamboo [and] are shy and secretive," said David M. Powell, a panda researcher at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park. Studying pandas in captivity is therefore essential, he said. Picky Eater Sikes' research team will use a zoo lab to document the animal's picky eating habits and the energy it gets from its food. Storing cut bamboo, even for short periods can affect palatability. "In nature, if the panda is hungry, it just bends a stalk over and eats it," he said. Zoo bamboo must be harvested and stored first. The team will also test which bamboo species the panda's most prefer, which bits of bamboo they like to eat (the leaves or the core of the stalk for example), and the relative amount of energy they get from each of the species. In preparation for Le Le and Ya Ya's arrival, Memphis Zoo workers have been cultivating seven species of bamboo in a nearby five-acre (two-hectare) agricultural center. At least three of these different species may be given to the pandas in any one day, but a total of more than 20 different bamboos will be tested for nutrition and palatability over the course of the project. "Pandas are difficult to feed in captivity because they require large quantities of fresh bamboo and are very selective about which plants they eat," said Rebecca Snyder, panda research curator at Zoo Atlanta, Georgia. It will be helpful to know what qualities pandas look for and how best to maintain those qualities in storage, she said. Though the University of Arkansas at Little Rock group will be the only team studying pandas on-site at the Memphis Zoo, other universities are also taking a major role in the research program. Panda fecal samples will be collected at the zoo and mailed to Doug Tolleson's lab at Texas A&M University in College Station. Tolleson and his team will use sophisticated chemical techniques to rapidly quantify the quality of the diet. Meanwhile, chemists at Mississippi State University will examine the breakdown of fat, protein, carbohydrates, and other nutrients in different types of bamboo. A team led by ecologist Scott B. Franklin at the University of Memphis, Tennessee, is already in China's Qinling Mountains. They are examining the effect of panda foraging on bamboo. Large areas of bamboo forest are often connected stem-to-stem underground. As a result, damaging one plant can affect others. Every 50 years or so, these linked colonies may all die off at the same time, following a dramatic burst of flowering. Large areas have been lost before due to bamboo die-offs, said Franklin. Gathering additional data may help to pick suitable sites for reserves. Scientists at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, the Chinese Association of Zoological Gardens in Beijing, and other Chinese bodies are also involved in several aspects of the Memphis Zoo program. Energetic Puzzle "When all is said and done [with these studies], we should have an outstanding picture of the nutrition of these animals," said Sikes. Maximizing the amount of energy that panda's get from their food may also make small, crucial differences during the difficult process of captive breeding. The giant panda "is an energetic puzzle," said Sikes. Though they have evolved from a mostly meat-eating lineage of carnivores, they've become absolute herbivores, he said. Most plant-eaters have developed adaptations to handle difficult-to-digest plant cellulose. Panda's haven't, making bamboo a relatively low-energy food source. Consequentially, the have to spend up to 18 hours a day eating. That doesn't leave much time, nor energy, to procreate, said Sikes. Tonight on National Geographic Today: The most crucial conservation efforts for pandas take place inside and outside of China's cities and villages. In its schools, efforts to educate the Chinese are essential and begin at an early age. See what lessons kindergartners are learning about endangered species and the importance of conservation. And, out in the forests of China, there is another critical link in conservation efforts: large reforestation programs with the goal of improving the future for many of China's most endangered species. Tomorrow: Planning a trip halfway around the world takes careful planning, especially when the travelers are two giant pandas! National Geographic Today takes you behind the scenes as Le Le and Ya Ya get ready to head from China to their new home at the Memphis Zoo. Get an inside look at what logistics, veterinary care, and potential complications must be tended to when undertaking such an incredible feat. And, talk about precious cargo! Join National geographic Today correspondent Patty Kim and her crew as they climb aboard a FedEx plane with two 150-pound (70-kilogram) giant pandas for an exclusive look at how these beautiful creatures traveled to their new home at the Memphis Zoo—one that bears a striking resemblance to their Chinese habitat. With the only television crew to travel with these giant creatures, National Geographic Today brings you exceptional coverage of this amazing journey. Additional Nationalgeographic.com Resources on Pandas: Creature Feature—Pandas (Fun Facts, Video, Audio, Map, Postcards): Go>> Panda Chow (Online Game): Go>> NG Book: The Little Panda (Windows on Literacy): Go>> Animals & Nature Guide: Go>> |
| © 1996-2008 National Geographic Society. All rights reserved. |