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Panda pornography

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Panda pornography (or panda porn) refers generally to videos depicting mating pandas, intended to promote sexual arousal in captive giant pandas. Under zoo conditions, the animals have, in general, proven unenthusiastic about mating, placing their species in danger of extinction. However, in their natural habitat in the wild, pandas are much more successful at mating, particularly as individuals are able to select for behavioral compatibility, as opposed to researchers choosing couples for genetic diversity purposes and trying to predict the narrow window when the females are in the mood. Panda pornography, along with other efforts to increase sexual arousal in pandas, has seen some success, but only in China and Thailand. The giant panda was deemed an endangered species until 2016, when its placement on the IUCN Red List was changed to a vulnerable species.

Background and history

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Since the 1980s, zoologists have studied the sexual behaviors of giant pandas,[1] a then-endangered species.[2] The giant panda is threatened by persistent habitat destruction and fragmentation.[3][4] Additionally, giant pandas have low fertility rates, which do not increase when they are in captivity,[5][6] and female pandas, who ovulate once a year,[7] are only receptive to mating for a maximum of 36 to 72 hours every spring.[8][9] When pandas successfully mate, it is often difficult to determine if the female pandas are pregnant, and fetuses cannot be detected with an ultrasound due to their small size, so zookeepers have to observe behavioral and dietary changes.[1] As a result, the Chinese government began sending pandas abroad in the 1990s so they could be artificially bred and released into the wild, but as of 2024, more pandas have been captured than released.[10]

Panda pornography as a concept was popularized in early 2006, when, following a successful surge in giant panda reproduction in the United States and Japan, zoologists in Thailand led by Prasertak Puttrakul, showed several captive giant pandas at Chiang Mai Zoo a number of videos showing other giant pandas mating.[9][11] Other methods, including the use of Viagra and sex toys to sexually stimulate pandas,[12] have thus far been unsuccessful.[6] Panda pornography is thought to be hardly used by most zookeepers, as the animals have generally shown a lack of enthusiasm,[13] as well as poor eyesight, making scent, sound, and social interactions over large areas more important.[8][1] The director of giant panda breeding in Chengdu, Zhang Zhihe, reports that the mating time of pandas ranges from 30 seconds to several minutes. In terms of pornography, recorded footage of mating pandas with both audio and video is used to draw the interest of pandas. In addition, pandas are made to do specialized exercises that strengthen the males' hind legs and stamina.[14]

Results

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Methods to captively breed pandas, such as panda pornography, have garnered mixed results.[7][15] Though the researchers behind the project believe it to be a success due to usage of mating videos for the animals, such success so far has not been achieved outside of China, where 31 cubs were born over a ten-month period following commencement of the experiment.[16] Due to the efforts of the Chinese government, which include forest reforms and an increase in nature reserves in Sichuan,[17] as of September 4,[18] 2016, the giant panda is no longer considered an endangered species on the IUCN Red List, but instead, a vulnerable species.[2] Despite the giant panda's recategorization, China's National Forestry and Grassland Administration told the Associated Press in 2021 that conservation efforts cannot be neglected, and continued to "emphasize the panda species' endangered status."[19]

Lin Bing

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Lin Bing in August 2009

On May 27, 2009 at Chiang Mai Zoo, Thailand, Lin Bing (Thai: หลินปิง, Chinese: 林冰, lit. 'Forest of Ice'; also known as Lin Ping) was the first panda cub to be born in Thailand after her parents, Chuang Chuang and Lin Hui, were shown panda pornography, and was conceived via gamete intrafallopian transfer while they were on loan.[20][21] On July 27, 2015, Lin Bing gave birth to twin female cubs at the Bifengxia Panda Base in Sichuan, China.[22] Like her parents, Lin Bing is considered Chinese property. She was scheduled to be returned to China after turning two years old,[23] in accordance with panda diplomacy, the practice of sending giant pandas from mainland China to other countries as a tool of diplomacy and wildlife conservation.[24] Her birth significantly boosted tourism at Chiang Mai Zoo.[25]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 Carney, Matthew (May 24, 2017). "Panda porn and speed dating key to species' survival". ABC Australia.
  2. 1 2 Frazee, Gretchen (September 5, 2016). "Giant panda off endangered species list, but Eastern gorilla declining". PBS.
  3. ↑ Li, R.; Xu, M.; Wong, M. H. G.; Qiu, S.; Li, X.; Ehrenfeld, Davis; Li, Dianmo (2015). "Climate change threatens giant panda protection in the 21st century". Biological Conservation. 182: 93–101. Bibcode:2015BCons.182...93L. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2014.11.037.
  4. ↑ Swaisgood, R. R.; Wei, F.; Wildt, D. E.; Kouba, A. J.; Zhang, Z. (2010). "Giant panda conservation science: how far we have come". Biology Letters. 6 (2): 143–145. Bibcode:2010BiLet...6..143S. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2009.0786. PMC 2865067. PMID 19864275.
  5. ↑ Earth's Changing Environment. Learn & Explore. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2010. p. 49. ISBN 978-1-61535-339-2.
  6. 1 2 "Pandas unexcited by Viagra". BBC News. September 9, 2002. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
  7. 1 2 "Study: Panda porn? Viagra? In the end, love wins". KVAL. The Oregon Zoo. December 16, 2015.
  8. 1 2 Gross, Rachel E. (February 14, 2017). "Why Panda Sex Isn't Black and White". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  9. 1 2 Prapanya, Narunart (January 25, 2006). "'Panda porn' to encourage mating". CNN. Retrieved August 17, 2007.
  10. ↑ Hvistendahl, Mara; Dong, Joy (October 15, 2024). "The Panda Factories". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 18, 2024.
  11. ↑ Handwerk, Brian (November 13, 2006). "Panda 'Porn' to Boost Mating Efforts at Thai Zoo". National Geographic News. Archived from the original on October 7, 2017. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
  12. ↑ Holland, Jennifer. "Pandas Get to Know Their Wild Side". National Geographic. Archived from the original on February 22, 2021.
  13. ↑ Gray, Denis (November 23, 2006). "Pandas Getting New View of Mating Ritual". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
  14. ↑ Ward, Clarissa. "'Panda Porn' to Boost Male's Sex Drive". ABC News. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Thai zookeepers choose high-tech option after panda porn videos fail to arouse". Taipei Times. April 3, 2007.
  16. ↑ "Panda porn pays off". Ananova. Archived from the original on December 1, 2006. Retrieved August 17, 2007.
  17. ↑ Ma, Ben; Lei, Shuo; Qing, Qin; Wen, Yali (May 3, 2018). "Should the Endangered Status of the Giant Panda Really Be Reduced? The Case of Giant Panda Conservation in Sichuan, China". National Institutes of Health. MDPI.
  18. ↑ "Endangered No More: Giant Pandas Are Now "Vulnerable"". San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. September 4, 2016.
  19. ↑ Pruitt-Young, Sharon (July 9, 2021). "Finally Some Good News! China Says Giant Pandas Are No Longer Endangered". NPR.
  20. ↑ "Thailand celebrates panda cub birth". Reuters. May 27, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  21. ↑ "Welcome to Pandas International - About Us". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved September 30, 2010.
  22. ↑ "Thailand-born panda Lin Bing gives birth to twins in China". China.org.cn. July 27, 2015. Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  23. ↑ "Thailand prepares to send Lin Ping back to China". BBC News. July 15, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  24. ↑ "Panda diplomacy: How China uses pandas to signal which countries they like, and which ones they don't". ABC News. December 8, 2023. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  25. ↑ Sattha, Cheewin (September 28, 2013). "Panda Lin Ping back to mate". Bangkok Post.
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