The Red Panda Protection and Research Center of the Sichuan Provincial Forestry Department was inaugurated in the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in the capital of Sichuan province on Saturday.

The red panda, known as the lesser panda, is a rare and endangered animal species found only in China, Nepal, Bhutan, India and Myanmar.

Due to the impact of habitat fragmentation and human activities, the red panda population has plummeted.

In addition, contagious diseases such as distemper and more than 10 parasitic diseases result in the high mortality rate for the red panda, said Zhang Zhihe, chief of the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

As the establishment of a large protection and research center is an effective means to protect the red panda, Sichuan has approved its establishment in Zhang's base.

According to Jiang Chu, deputy chief of the Sichuan Provincial Forestry Department, the center will conduct a systematic study of the breeding and disease prevention control of the red panda and plans to bring the number of its existing 64 red pandas to 100 in three and five years, establishing the self-sustaining captive red panda population.

Jiang Chu (left), deputy chief of the Sichuan Provincial Department of Forestry, and Zhang Zhihe, chief of the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, open the cage to unleash a red panda to the Red Panda Nursery Facility in Zhang's base. [Photo/Huang Zhiling]