The Chinese State Forestry Administration has announced that the number of pandas bred in captivity is currently 422, with 40 of the 43 cubs born last year surviving. This brings the total known population in China to 2,286. The figure is being hailed as a sign of successful breeding and conservation efforts, combining national sanctuaries alongside a breeding program located in the panda heartland of Chengdu, Sichuan province.
Four pandas bred in captivity were released into sanctuaries last year, and Chinese authorities have restated their commitment to using the breeding program to boost wild populations.
However, legally dubious logging activities (permitted by a loophole ironically designed to encourage reforestation) threaten around 12% of wild pandas, Greenpeace claimed in October.
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