Red Panda Conservation Breeding and Augmentation Programme of Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling has been shortlisted as finalists by World Association of Zoos and Aquariums for the 2024 WAZA Conservation & Environmental Sustainability Awards.
- Between 2022 and 2024, nine captive-bred red pandas (seven females and two males) were released into Singalila National Park (SNP) in West Bengal.
- PNHZP, in collaboration with the Wildlife Wing of the Government of West Bengal, has undertaken several habitat restoration initiatives in Singalila National Park and Darjeeling division.
About Red pandas
- Red pandas, found in India, Nepal, Bhutan and China, face a host of threats such as habitat loss and degradation, illegal trapping and poaching and snaring.
- Red pandas are very skillful and acrobatic animals that predominantly stay in trees.
- Almost 50% of the red panda’s habitat is in the Eastern Himalayas.
- They use their long, bushy tails for balance and to cover themselves in winter, presumably for warmth.
- Primarily an herbivore, the name panda is said to come from the Nepali word ‘ponya,’ which means bamboo or plant eating animal.
- In India, this elusive species is found in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of West Bengal.
- It is the state animal of Sikkim.
- Listed as Endangered in the IUCN red list of Threatened Species and under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the red panda has the highest legal protection.
