A method for encouraging maternal care in the giant panda

✍ Scribed by G.Q. Zhang; R.R. Swaisgood; R.P. Wei; H.M. Zhang; H.Y. Han; D.S. Li; L.F. Wu; A.M. White; D.G. Lindburg

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2000
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 109 KB
• Volume: 19
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0733-3188
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1098-2361(2000)19:1<53::aid-zoo6>3.0.co;2-9

✦ Synopsis

We developed a method to facilitate maternal care in a giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) female that rejected her cub immediately after parturition. After removal of the cub, the female was systematically exposed to a regime of infantrelated stimuli, including a surrogate toy panda, accompanied by infant vocalizations and urine, and the mother's own milk. The female displayed several measures of maternal behavior toward the surrogate, for example, spending 61% of her time holding the surrogate in positions typical for the species. There was some evidence that maternal proficiency increased across the 4 weeks of the experiment. Results also indicate that the female was responsive to both infant vocalizations and urine, but not milk. After a transitional period in which we assisted the female in her efforts to nurse and groom the infant, all maternal care-giving responsibilities were returned to the mother. Over the next 3 months, the pattern of maternal care followed the species-typical course of declining mother-infant contact, grooming, overall interaction time, and responsiveness to the cub's vocalizations. This study marks the first successful reunification of a giant panda mother with an infant separated at birth and, it is hoped, will serve as a model for similar efforts elsewhere.