Giant pandas are no longer endangered, say animal experts

The giant panda is no longer an endangered species following decades of work by conservationists.

The official status of the bear has been changed from “endangered” to “vulnerable” because of a population rebound in China.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature said in a report that the panda species has been reclassified to reflect its growing numbers in the wild in southern China.

It said the wild panda population jumped to 1,864 in 2014 from 1,596 in 2004, the result of work by Chinese agencies to enforce poaching bans and expand forest reserves.

The IUCN report warned that although better forest protection has helped increase panda numbers, climate change is predicted to eliminate more than 35 per cent of its natural bamboo habitat in the next 80 years, potentially leading to another decline.

Nevertheless, animal groups hailed the recovery of the black-and-white bear that has long been a symbol of China and the global conservation movement.

The panda population reached an estimated low of less than 1,000 in the 1980s due to poaching and deforestation until Beijing threw its full weight behind preserving the animal, which has been sent to zoos around the world as a gesture of Chinese diplomatic goodwill.