Heat wave, neglect suspected in panda death

• Source: Global Times
• [01:54 July 26 2010]
• Comments

Giant panda Quan Quan at the Jinan Zoo on April 2, 2008. Photo: IC

By Guo Qiang and Jin Jianyu

The management at Jinan Zoo in eastern Shandong Province has been urged to release the result of a probe into the sudden death of an iconic giant panda, amid speculation that the animal died from the malpractice of its keepers.

A post mortem examination was underway by a group of experts from the Sichuan-based Wolong Giant Panda Reserve Center, from where Quan Quan was on lease to Jinan Zoo since September 2007. The autopsy result will be announced soon, management at the zoo said over the weekend.

The panda was found dead at 10 pm Thursday inside a former air-raid shelter in the zoo, where it had been brought by zookeepers to cool down, according to the zoo.

The panda died hours after being taken to the shelter, the Xinhua News Agency reported, citing an unnamed source familiar with the matter.

Meanwhile, a source told the local Qilu Evening News that that "a heavy odor could be detected Friday morning. One end of the shelter was being used as a warehouse."

The zoo could not be reached for comment.

The female panda, aged 21, was at the equivalent human age of more than 70 years old. According to Chen Lihua, head of the animal-breeding department at Shanghai Zoo, a panda's life expectancy is about 25, while most pandas live to between 20 and 25.

Chen told the Global Times that the possibility of the panda having died of natural causes could not be ruled out since the panda was at an advanced age and vulnerable to hot weather.

The panda was hailed as a "heroic mother" because she gave birth to seven cubs.

Her name, Quan Quan, which means "spring," was chosen from among suggestions by the public to honor Jinan, which has a reputation as "city of springs," reports said.

Arriving at the zoo three years ago, Quan Quan had since become one of the zoo's major attractions, bringing in up to 30,000 visitors each weekend, the Jinan-based Qilu Evening News reported.

People visited the zoo at the weekend to mourn the death of Quan Quan. Many who couldn't get a last glimpse of her expressed their sorrow at her death.

"The zoo must give an explanation for the death of the panda as soon as possible. Without the panda, the zoo will lose the top attraction for its visitors," said Wang Jingjing, a 27-year-old interior designer in Jinan who has visited the panda at the zoo.

"She was quite healthy when I visited her last time," she said.

Giant pandas are among the world's most endangered species.

More than 1,000 pandas live in the wild, while more than 200 are raised in captivity in China, according to Heng Yi, a spokesman for the Wolong panda center.

Heng told the Global Times that the center has approximately 150 pandas, but only 75 are currently kept at the center.