How you can help:
• Make a check out to "Zoological Society of San Diego" and mail it to:
San Diego Zoo
Wolong Panda Center Earthquake Relief
P.O. Box 120271
San Diego, CA 92112
• If you would like to donate stock, please call:
619-231-1515, ext. 4421
A devastating earthquake hits panda country
China's worst earthquake in more than 30 years—a 7.9 magnitude—struck right in the heart of giant panda country on May 12, 2008. The devastation in Sichuan Province and neighboring regions was unspeakable: nearly 70,000 people lost their lives; more than 17,000 people are still missing; cities and towns were reduced to rubble; mountainside villages were completely buried by landslides; and one of the San Diego Zoo's partners in conservation, the Wolong Giant Panda Breeding Center and Reserve, was severely damaged and is in desperate need of assistance.
Wolong Panda Reserve update
Currently, direct communication with the Wolong staff is very limited. However, Ron Swaisgood, Ph.D., co-head of the San Diego Zoo's Giant Panda Conservation Unit, has corresponded with colleagues from Wolong's satellite panda facility at Bifengxia, a few hours south of Chengdu, the capital of the Sichuan Province. Following is a brief update about Wolong.
• Of the 60-plus pandas housed at Wolong's breeding center, one—a 9-year-old female named Mao Mao—was killed, and one—Xiao Xiao, a 6-year-old female—is still missing.
• All of the staff at the breeding center, as well as their families, survived the earthquake but lost their homes. Sadly, five staff members who worked in the reserve were killed.
• Fourteen of Wolong's 32 giant panda enclosures were totally destroyed. The other 18 enclosures were severely damaged. Currently, all of the pandas are being kept in a few enclosures that have been temporarily repaired.
• Six female pandas, including San Diego Zoo-born Hua Mei, have been relocated to the Wolong satellite facility in Bifengxia. Our other San Diego Zoo-born panda, Mei Sheng, was already living in Bifengxia at the time of the earthquake. Another eight pandas were transported to the Beijing Zoo, where they will remain throughout the Olympics.
• The dedicated and heroic Wolong staff are living in crowded tents and doing their best, with limited resources, to care for the pandas. There is no power, no telephone service, no running water, and no Internet service. The staff are cooking panda bread and their own food over fires by using the wood of fallen trees as fuel.
• The main road to Wolong was destroyed, so the only way to reach the breeding center by land is via a detour route through the remote mountains. Travel time to Wolong from the city of Dujiangyan has increased from 2 to 14 hours.
• Emergency supplies such as medicine, veterinary supplies, and food for the people and pandas were initially airlifted to Wolong by helicopter and brought in by foot soldiers who trekked through the mountains to reach the breeding center. Now that the detour route has been established, the supplies are being trucked to Wolong.
• The Wolong Breeding Center will be rebuilt within the Wolong Nature Reserve although it may be reestablished at a new, safer site.
Help for Wolong from the San Diego Zoo
The San Diego Zoo, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), and several other U.S. zoos are providing crucial financial support for the Wolong Giant Panda Breeding Center to help rebuild the center and care for its pandas and dedicated staff. Your generosity in contributing to our efforts is sincerely appreciated and will help us make a difference at this important giant panda conservation center.
