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Bamboo pointer to climate change impact on Giant Pandas

Posted on 3 November 2008

Climate change is poised to have a major impact on one of the natural world’s most distinctive animal species.

Global warming is likely to result in substantial re-distribution of plants and animals, and there is particular concern for rare species, such as the Giant Panda, which survives in a small area of habitat in China.

The impacts of climate change are complex, favouring some species while making others rarer

Dr Jon Lovett

A joint study by the University of York and the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh with Sichuan University and the Kuming Institute of Botany focused on the effect of climate change on the bamboos which are the Giant Pandas’ principal food.

The researchers discovered that while some types of bamboo reduced in range due to global warming, others actually increased. The findings will provide important information to help to safeguard the animal’s future.

Professor Steve Blackmore, Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh, said: "Pandas spend 14 hours a day eating, and bamboo forms 99 per cent of their diet, so they are completely reliant on the right bamboo species being present in order to survive."

Edinburgh researchers gathered data on bamboo distribution from both herbarium records and in the Pandas’ home range in Sichuan province. The data was analysed by the University of York team using a special computer programme called YOGA – York Genetic Algorithm – developed by Dr Colin McClean, in the University’s Environment Department.

Dr McClean said: "The programme makes a bioclimatic envelope for each bamboo species. We can then move this envelope into future climate scenarios to see how the bamboos might be affected by climate change. YOGA is particularly useful because it can produce good results on relatively small data sets."

Director of the Centre for Ecology, Law and Policy, Dr Jon Lovett, who led the work in York, added: "The results were particularly striking in that some of the key food plants were badly affected, whereas others actually increased their ranges under global warming. So the impacts of climate change are complex, favouring some species while making others rarer.

"Fostering this sort of adaptation seems to be the most important policy approach to adopt now, as global use of fossil fuels, the main driver of climate change, shows little sign of slowing down. We should also remember that though the Giant Panda can help us focus attention on climate change, it is not the only species that will be affected."

ENDS