The panda is a symbolic animal of endangered species. But it appears that protecting it does not halt the decline of other large mammals that share its habitat, according to a study published Monday in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution .
Thanks to China's many conservation efforts, in 2016 the giant panda was removed from the category of endangered species on the Red List of the Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The animal, which remains "vulnerable", is considered an "umbrella" species: its protection involves that of many other animals and plants less known to the general public.
A territory too small
But the umbrella wouldn't work for the large carnivores that share the panda's habitat. The leopard, the snow leopard, the wolf and the dhole (or "Asian wild dog") have almost disappeared from protected areas since the 1960s, according to the study which is based on photos taken between 2008 and 2018 in the mountains of central China.
The leopard has lost 81% of its range, the snow leopard 38%, the wolf 77% and the dhole 95%. These species need a much larger “home range” than pandas (sometimes over 100 km²). The fragmentation of protected areas into small reserves does not suit them. A single "small" panda reserve is "grossly insufficient to support a viable population of large carnivores," says Sheng Li, co-author of the study.
An overview of conservation
The four large carnivores are also victims of poaching. This failure "does not erase the fact that the panda is an effective umbrella species for many other species", continues the Chinese researcher. There is, however, a “lesson” to be learned for conservation policies. “Our results call for a shift from a conservation strategy based on a single species to a holistic view of ecosystem management,” he explains.
The study's authors hope that the Giant Panda National Park project, which would cover the many existing separate reserves, can play this role. “Even though it bears the name of a single species, the goal of this national park is to protect the integrity of ecosystems,” concludes Sheng Li.
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