Reintroduction Program – 2003

Early Stages of the Reintroduction Program

The program to reintroduce captive born Giant Pandas back into the wild began in July of 2003. The China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP) formed a team to begin research on the wild training of captive pandas from the fields of ecology, behavior, veterinary needs, feeding management and researched the captive individuals’ adaptability in the wild.

Xiang Xiang

Phase 1

Comparative studies on Xiang Xiang and Fufu, two individuals of a pair of twin pandas determined Xiang Xiang would be the first panda to enter the reintroduction program.   He entered the wild training enclosure on July 8th, 2003.  Xiang Xiang went through almost 3 years of training in serveraly increaslingly larger semi-wild enclosures.