New hope for giant pandas

THE population of endangered giant pandas in the wild in China has jumped by more than 40% to 1,590 since efforts to protect them began in the early 1990s, the Chinese government said yesterday.

However, pandas still face threats from “human intervention” and the isolation of their living areas, a government report said.

The giant panda, which lives in China’s mountains, is one of the world’s rarest animals.