Want China Times, Xinhua 2015-04-21
A nature reserve in northwest China's Gansu province has captured its first film footage of some striking courtship behavior by a male panda — urinating while doing a handstand.
The panda makes its mark. (Photo/Xinhua) |
A nature reserve in northwest China's Gansu province has captured its first film footage of some striking courtship behavior by a male panda — urinating while doing a handstand.
In the clip
shown to media on Sunday, the giant panda pushes his left hind leg up against a
tree and starts to urinate on the bark in a half upside-down position. He then
gets down, walks to another tree some 10 meters away, smells it for a moment
and repeats the action.
The video
was taken on January 15 at the Baishuijiang National Nature Reserve using
infrared cameras. This technology, installed about three years ago, has been
helping the reserve record valuable evidence of behavior among the reclusive inhabitants
of the forest.
Reserve
staff explained that urinating in a handstand position is a common courtship
act by giant pandas. The urine contains pheromones and the scent can spread
further, attracting more potential partners, if the urine is higher up a tree.
At the same
time, pandas also use their urine to mark territory and warn rivals to stay
away, increasing their chances of mating.
Covering
over 200,000 hectares, the Baishuijiang reserve is one of China's largest
habitats for wild pandas. Census data shows that there are 132 pandas in the
province, 110 of them in Baishuijiang.
Yuan
Fengxiao, head of the reserve's management bureau, said the infrared cameras
have also captured footage of rare species including takins, golden monkeys,
forest musk deer, Chinese monals and golden cats.
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