Conservationists have decided to catch red pandas alive as the bodies of two dead red pandas were badly damaged while the other two pandas were buried by local villagers before conservationists got to test them. [break]
Sujit Kumar Shrestha, manager of Kanchanjungha Conservation Area (KCA), said the medical test of red pandas from the forest will hopefully reveal the actual cause of deaths. “We are trying to confirm if the four red pandas died of a disease,” said Shrestha.
According to Shrestha, conservationists will keep the red pandas, especially those in the upper part of the KCA and Pathivara region. World Wildlife Fund (WWF) will help conduct medical test of the red pandas.
Ramesh Rai, a social activist with Himalayan Conservation Forum, an NGO active in conserving red pandas, said they have already launched a campaign, asking local villagers to inform them about infected pandas.
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