Conserving biodiversity is a daunting and complex task. Perhaps no species presents a greater challenge than the giant panda – one of the most recognized and threatened animals on the planet. Its difficult-to-traverse, mountainous habitat in China makes quantifying population numbers in the wild exceedingly difficult. Despite a recent survey suggesting that the wild population may be growing, there is no disagreement that the primary threat is severely fragmented habitat. There now are more than 40 isolated populations, many too small or containing too few giant pandas to be demographically and genetically viable for much longer
