Measuring earthquake damage on panda habitat

What was the effect of the massive Sichuan earthquake on panda habitat?
The magnitude 8.0 earthquake that caused catastrophic destruction to towns and villages in Sichuan, China in May, 2008 also caused sever damage to giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) habitat. A research article appearing in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment found that 354 km² (23%) of panda habitat in the region was destroyed, 249 km² of which was inside nature reserves. The researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing also found that the remaining habitat was fragmented by landslides and mudflows. This is obviously bad news for the long term survival of the giant panda with some estimates at 1500 individuals living in the wild.

Giant panda. Ailuropoda melanoleuca, at Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Washington, D.C. Image credt, Jeff Kubina.The Sichuan region is home to more than 12,000 species of plants and 1122 species of vertebrates, the area includes more than half of the habitat for the Earth's wild giant panda population. The researchers estimate that 60% of the of the wild giant panda population was affected to some extent by the earthquake.

Scientists calculate damage; propose conservation measures...

To determine the extent of habitat loss and fragmentation, the researchers used a combination of satellite imagery, field observations and published research. Given that forests are the main vegetation type used by the pandas, the researchers compared forested areas in satellite images from September 2007, before the earthquake, to images after the earthquake and its aftershocks, in July 2008.

The researchers also considered criteria for what makes forest habitat suitable for pandas, including elevation, slope incline and presence of bamboo. Based on their analyses, they concluded that more than 354 square kilometers, or about 23 percent, of the pandas' habitat was converted to bare land. Of the remaining habitat, they found that large habitat areas had been fragmented into smaller, disconnected patches.

In a release put out by the Ecological Society of America which publishes the journal, lead author Weihua Xu says:

"It is probable that habitat fragmentation has separated the giant panda population inhabiting this region, which could be as low as 35 individuals. This kind of isolation increases their risk of extinction in the wild, due in part to a higher likelihood of inbreeding."

According to the release, Xu and his colleagues propose a plan to encourage pandas to move between patches using specially protected corridors. They also recommend areas to be protected outside of nature reserves, where the earthquake caused more than twice as much damage to panda habitat as inside reserves. Finally, they recommend that post-earthquake relocation of affected towns takes panda habitat into consideration. According to Xu:

"It is vital to the survival of this species that measures are taken to protect panda habitat outside nature reserves. Giant pandas in this region are more vulnerable than ever to human disturbance, including post-earthquake reconstruction and tourism. When coupled with these increasing human activities, natural disasters create unprecedented challenges for biodiversity conservation."

Source:	Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
Title:	Conservation of giant panda habitat in South Minshan, China, after the May 2008 earthquake
Authors:	Weihua Xu, Xuezhi Wang, Zhiyun Ouyang, Jindong Zhang, Zhiqi Li, Yi Xiao, and Hua Zheng
	State Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China