Plate from “Trailing the giant panda”. Photo obtained from http://printmaking1101.blog.sohu.com/248606767.html
Do you know who the first westerners to shoot a Giant Panda where? If not and you’re interested read on . . .
During an expedition to China funded by the Field Museum of Natural History in the 1920s, Kermit and Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. (sons of President Theodore Roosevelt) became the first foreigners to shoot a Giant Panda. In 1924, Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. led an expedition to China with his brother Kermit. They were looking for an Ovis poli, a wild sheep discovered by Marco Polo in the 13th century. There were no specimens of this animal in any museum of the world. During the six months of the expedition, they were able to collect over 2000 small mammals, birds and reptiles, 70 large mammals and eight specimens of the Ovis poli.
A few years later, the field museum funded a second expedition to Asia. This time, the Roosevelts wanted to go to Indo-china, to look for the Giant Pandas. This area was largely unknown and the expedition suffered from many more obstacles than their first expedition. Jack Young, who was the brother of Quentin (Ruth Harkness guide on the expedition to find Su Lin), helped the Roosevelts to track down the giant panda. Even with his help, the group was harassed by bandits and part of their equipment and mules were lost. Nevertheless, this expedition was also a success; they collected 40 big mammals, 2000 small mammals, 6000 birds and reptiles, and the Giant Panda! And they wrote a book about it called “Trailing the Giant Panda”
“Trailing the Giant Panda” by Theodore Roosevelt Jr. and Kermit Roosevelt New York ; London : Scribner, 1929. Photo obtained from http://printmaking1101.blog.sohu.com/248606767.html
Both brothers killed the animal, an old male (near Yele commune of Mianning county of Sichuan province), by shooting him at the same time, so both of them share the title of being the first foreigners to shoot a Panda. They were also able to obtain a second panda skin, shot by a local huntsman. That Giant Panda was the first complete specimen to ever be collected by a westerner. The specimen is still on display in the Hall of Asian Mammals at the Field Museum in Chicago.
The two Giant Pandas collected during the Field Museum expedition to China in 1928. photo obtained from http://www.fieldmuseum.org/theodore-and-kermit-roosevelt
And now you can say you know the two foreigners that shot the first giant panda.
– Maria
