Giant panda cub Shu Bao born in June is seen playing with its mother Ai Bao at the Everland in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province of South Korea on October 27, 2026. The cub is expected to make its public debut on October 30. Photo: IC

China's captive giant panda population has reached 830, and its genetic diversity continues to improve, according to the Global Panda Partners 2026 conference on Tuesday.

In recent years, ecological corridors have helped reconnect 13 previously isolated local giant panda populations to the broader population, significantly improving habitat connectivity. Researchers have recorded more than 150 instances of giant pandas and other wildlife activity in the corridors, making it increasingly common for pandas to move between habitats and find potential mates, according to the conference.

As China's endemic flagship species and an internationally recognized symbol of global biodiversity conservation, the giant panda has drawn more 1 billion visits worldwide.

This year marks the fifth anniversary of the establishment of the Giant Panda National Park, which has made initial progress in ecological conservation and restoration.

The Sichuan section of the national park covers approximately 19,300 square kilometers, accounting for nearly 90 percent of the park's total area, and is home to 1,227 wild giant pandas. Over the past five years, Sichuan has restored more than 22,667 hectares of panda habitat, and both habitat quality  and biodiversity have continued to improve, according to an official with the Sichuan Provincial Forestry and Grassland Administration.

The national park has imposed stricter controls on human activity and cracked down harder on ecological violations. It has phased out environmentally damaging activities and facilities, revoking 200 mining permits and closing 270 of the 281 small hydropower stations slated for closure.

As a result, the population of wild panda has grown from approximately 1,100 in the 1980s to around 1,900 today, while the captive population has expanded with stronger scientific and technological support.

At the main forum of the conference, a bilingual Chinese-English think tank report on ecological civilizations was released, setting out China's ideas and practices in ecological civilization and biodiversity conservation to the international community.


The establishment of the Giant Panda National Park has not only provided giant pandas with a more favorable habitat, but also created an umbrella of protection for other species. In Sichuan, researchers have discovered 14 new plant species and two new amphibian and reptile species during the past five years. Populations of rare wildlife have also shown signs of recovery. The number of locations where snow leopards have been detected has increased year by year, golden snub-nosed monkey populations have remained generally stable while expanding in some areas.

Against this backdrop, international cooperation on giant panda conservation has broadened. Since the 1990s, China has conducted international conservation research with 26 institutions in 20 countries.

Giant pandas are currently living overseas in countries including the US and France. China has also conducted specialized breeding cooperation programs with countries such as Spain and Belgium, working with local zoos on panda reproduction, cub rearing, disease prevention and control, and genetic research.

On September 27, two giant pandas Pingping and Fushuang arrived at Zoo Atlanta in the US, beginning a 10-year stay.
As of now, a total of 69 giant pandas have been sent overseas for international cooperation programs. Since the launch of these partnerships, a total of 73 cubs have been successfully bred, contributing to the integration of scientific resources, advancement of research, species conservation and people-to-people exchanges.