Watch This | Legacy of An An: Ocean Park Hong Kong studies longest-living panda's life
There's a saying: When a whale falls, everything grows. The loss of life is sometimes the beginning of new lives, and although the loss of a lovely giant panda is exceptionally sad, time cannot truly erase the traces of its existence.
Delve into the world of An An, Ocean Park Hong Kong's beloved giant panda ambassador who enjoyed an exceptional lifespan of 35 years, equivalent to 105 human years. Despite being a 'centenarian' panda, research has unveiled that An An was active for an average of 35% of the observation time.
Before An An passed away on July 21, 2022, the study team at Ocean Park carefully monitored his movements, activity, and preferred habitats for a total of 31 months, from July 2019 to January 2022. This allowed them to accrue 422.5 hours of observation time across 169 observation days.
Giant pandas are ancient creatures, and at the same time, are becoming endangered due to factors such as a more homogenous diet and a narrower habitat. Research on An An's life, therefore, has played a considerable role in the conservation of this species, making this study with An An a valuable contribution to human's understanding of panda biology and ecology.
"By categorizing An An's behavior into different activity types and tracking his movements across various pathways within his habitat, we were able to understand his interactions with the environment better and obtain valuable information for assessing his physical fitness and psychological well-being to enhance his welfare," said Dr Eszter Matrai, Senior Research Fellow at Ocean Park Corporation and lead investigator of the research.
An An, the world-oldest male giant panda under human care, lived at The Hong Kong Jockey Club Sichuan Treasures at Ocean Park and passed away in 2022 at an exceptional age.
The study with An An, initiated in 2019, aimed to assess his activity patterns and habitat usage through detailed behavioral observations. This research is important because animal welfare is multifaceted encompassing both physical and mental health components. It has long since left us, but the traces it left behind are still helping its descendants.
Related News:
Kevin Yeung: Ocean Park to send caregivers to Sichuan to prepare for arrival of giant pandas
Comment