Guest guest Posted August 23, 2001 Report Share Posted August 23, 2001 China Daily http://www1.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/ 08/23/2001 CHENGDU: The cloning of giant pandas, an endangered animal species, would have no benefits for the protection of the rare creatures, says a group of Chinese experts. These experts, who have been engaged in research on the protection of the rare animals over a long period of time, said cloning would have a negative impact on the protection of the giant pandas. " Cloning is simply the reproduction of a single animal and would not help to preserve the animal species, " said Yu Jianqiu, deputy director of the Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base in Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan Province. Because, said Yu, genetic diversity is very important if animals are to survive and continue to increase in numbers. He said, at present, the technology used to clone the giant pandas is far from serving the purpose of protecting the rare creatures. Professor Feng Wenhe, from Sichuan University, and other experts at the Chengdu-based giant panda breeding base said they are very worried about the optimistic reports on the cloned sheep Dolly and the cloning of giant pandas. They said such reports have given the general public misconceived ideas about the protection of rare animals. Professor Feng said research on the cloning of the giant pandas is okay, but it is not necessary to spend huge amounts of money to clone the rare creatures. Experts point out that the problem that threatens the survival of rare animals is the damage done to their habitats. The habitat of the pandas has shrunk and been damaged by human activities, and poaching of the animals still occurs. Xinhua Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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