Difference in Morphology and Ecological Traits of Wild Giant Pandas in the Qinling Mountians and Sichuan

As an endemic species to China,the giant panda(Ailuropoda melanoleuca) is only distributed in the isolated Qinling,Minshan,Qionglai,Daxiangling,Xiaoxiangling and Liangshan Mountains.Based on previous reports,we made a comprehensive comparison of morphology in skull,tooth and body colour,diet,habitat use,migration,estrus and maternal feature of wild giant pandas in the Qinling Mountains and Sichuan.Difference was found in skull,tooth and body size for gant pandas in the two areas,and ecological traits,including diet,habitat use and migration differed significantly,too.Different environmental conditions and genetic divergence presumbly contributed to above difference,and giant pandas also exhibited some adaptive behavioural adjustment to human interference in the Qinling Mountains.Giant pandas in the Qinling Mountains and Sichuan should be treated as two separate Management Units when developing adaptive management strategies.