Effect of China's rapid development on its iconic giant panda

Abstract

Anthropogenic factors affect biodiversity and have led to the contraction or extinction of animal populations worldwide. Here, we use historical demographic data, spanning the past 300 years, to show that a rapid distributional contraction of giant pandas took place during the 18th and 19th centuries alongside the increase in human population. Land-use also underwent a significant change across the areas where giant pandas were found because of government agricultural policy and the introduction of new crops. The impact of social development on giant pandas includes habitat loss and fragmentation, and range reductions. Our findings would facilitate the design of effective conservation strategies that seek to conserve and increase current habitats of this iconic species, especially in areas that our analysis has identified as places where pandas have suffered from high human pressure. © 2013 The Author(s).