Darjeeling’s Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoo's Red Panda Program Selected as Finalist for 2024 WAZA Conservation Award

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Red Panda Conservation Breeding and Augmentation Programme of Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling has been shortlisted as one of the top three finalists by World Association of Zoos and Aquariums for the 2024 WAZA Conservation & Environmental Sustainability Awards. Winner will be announced at 79th WAZA Annual Conference at Tarongo Zoo, Sydney, Australia on 7th Nov 2024. Between 2022 and 2024, nine captive-bred red pandas (seven females and two males) were released into Singalila National Park (SNP) in West Bengal. Of the seven released females, three gave birth to five cubs in wild.

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. PNHZP is taking several in-house and collaborative research works related to Red Panda with institutions like CCMB, IISER and WII.

PNHZP’s conservation efforts are further strengthened by its Biobanking and Genetic Resource Facility, wherein gametes, tissues, and DNA of Red Pandas and other endangered species will be preserved for future use.

These initiatives will be further continued in future for long term augmentation and conservation of Red Pandas in their natural habitat.

About Red Panda:

  1. Key Facts
  2. Common Name: Red panda
  3. Scientific Name: Ailurus fulgens
  4. Geographic habitat: Sikkim, West Bengal, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh
  5. Height: < 30cm
  6. Length: 50 to 60 cm
  7. Weight: Male: 4.5-6.2kg, Female: 3.7-4.5kg
  8. Population: Around 2500
  9. Status: Endangered

The red panda has an extra thumb for feeding and climbing

CONSERVATION ISSUES

  1. Habitat fragmentation and degradation.
  2. Predation by feral dogs.
  3. Occasional hunting and poaching.

The red panda is a small arboreal mammal found in the forests of India, Nepal, Bhutan, and the northern mountains of Myanmar and southern China. It thrives best at 2,200-4,800m in mixed deciduous and conifer forests with dense understories of bamboo, though red panda evidences have also been found at 1800m.

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. WWF India has been working since 2005 in the eastern Himalayan region to conserve this species.

About WAZA Conservation Award:

The World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) is the "umbrella" organization for the world zoo and aquarium community. Its mission is to provide leadership and support for zoos, aquariums, and partner organizations of the world in animal care and welfare, conservation of biodiversity, environmental education and global sustainability.

After the International Union of Directors of Zoological Gardens (IUDZG), founded in 1935 at Basel, Switzerland, ceased to exist during World War II, it was refounded in Rotterdam in 1946 by a group of zoo directors from allied or neutral countries. In 1950 IUDZG became an international organisation member of International Union for the Protection of Nature.

In 1991 the IUDZG adopted a new name, World Zoo Organization, and revised its membership rules to include regional zoo associations.

In 2000 the organization got its current name, the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, to reflect a more modern institution working together at a global level.

All members of the WAZA network are obliged to comply with "WAZA's Code of Ethics and Animal Welfare", adopted by WAZA in 2003.

Members of the association include leading zoos and aquariums, and regional and national Associations of Zoos and Aquariums as well as some affiliate organizations, such as zoo veterinarians or zoo educators, from all around the world. Together they are 'United for Conservation'.

According to the organization, there are two characteristics that all the institutions known as 'zoos' have in common:

Zoos possess and manage collections that primarily consist of wild (nondomesticated) animals, of one or more species, that are housed so that they are easier to see and to study than in nature.

Zoos display at least a portion of this collection to the public for at least a significant part of the year, if not throughout the year.

Wikipedia, PIB, WWF - India, WAZA, WAZA ( Wikipedia )

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