Seasonal Shifts in Panda Behaviors

An interesting aspect of conducting year-round research at Bifengxia is that we get to observe panda behaviors every season, which allows us to detect seasonal changes. As this is the first time that I have traveled here in the fall, I’ve started noticing a difference in bear activity between May and August.

Meghan and I try to spit the four seasons in half so that we maximize our time with our daughter- Late winter and late summer go to Megs, and I usually travel in the early summer and early winter.  When I arrive in May, the weather is still a bit cool and the pandas are very energetic and full of hormones. However, the sweltering cub season seems to cause the the bears to look tired and slightly inactive. I too would act the same way given the mental and physical changes taking place.

These are just my gross observations, but it will be exciting to see if a significance really exists. If behaviors do differ between the seasons, or across years, this will be determined in our Stereotypic study, which we have been working on for five years! This is just another piece of the stereotypic study pie that we can focus on. Currently, Meghan and I are compiling the results to answer our primary question- 1) Are stereotypic pandas reproductively successful? This will allow us to answer additional questions, such as- Can specific stereotypes predict reproductive success? Or- Do differences exist between wild/captive born, hand/mother raised, pen locations, etc.

This is one of my favorite studies that we are performing, which means that the write-up will be equally exciting. No word yet on an estimated completion date, but longitudinal studies can often carry on for years, pushing out updates in the form of papers every so often. This is the plan and I’m glad to have y’all on board. If you have any questions about stereotypes or our study, I’d enjoy hearing from you.