Giant pandas are by nature solitary creatures, but that doesn't mean they aren't fluent in the language of love

When spring arrives and these large creatures begin to become restless inside, effective communication between members is the most important aid to achieving successful mating. Giant pandas know how to express their interest.

A team of American and Chinese scientists recorded the sounds made by giant pandas: before, during and after mating in three stages. The analysis showed that for pandas, communicating with each other through sounds during mating is of great importance.

The study is based on recordings of 23 adult giant pandas living near Sichuan, China, during the 2016 and 2018 breeding seasons.

Although the creatures most often make "baa" calls, the researchers found that they actually have a complex mating repertoire that involves a range of vocal changes.

The authors write, "Although chirping is relatively uncommon in males, when they begin interacting with other members of the same species, both males and females have a variety of vocal variations including barks, moans, growls, snarls, and squeals."

Each of these types of noise is specific to a different environment and used for a different purpose. What's more, depending on the pitch, length and pattern, these calls can reflect their interests, identity, size, sex and hormone levels, and even all the necessary messages.

The findings suggest that a key part of achieving mating between two giant pandas is getting their calls in sync with each other.

For example, when two pandas first meet each other, they use long bleats, a "non-aggressive" call that encourages close contact. However, if mating is successful, those sounds change. The tone becomes softer, as if they were murmurs during mating - what researchers call love talk or love songs.

But if two pandas don't think they get along with each other, then a more aggressive chattering noise is more aggressive. Instead of bleats, chirps and shrill grunts, the recordings recorded low growls, hisses and intimidating murmurs - signs that the date wasn't going well.

By matching patterns of vocal signals during panda estrus, researchers at the San Diego Zoo and the Chinese Giant Panda Research and Conservation Center hope to improve the success of current breeding programs.

Giant pandas are fragile species that have been sighted in many places in the past, but now they are confined to protected areas.

Given the extremely low retention and low birth rate in the wild, breeding programs are an important part of ensuring the continuation of their species.

If conservation and managers can grasp the meaning in the calls of giant pandas, they will be better able to predict which pairs are successful and which are not.

The bamboo diet of giant pandas affects their mating, pregnancy and reproduction

Despite decades of protection, giant pandas still have difficulty mating, which makes them rarely get pregnant. Researchers have struggled with this, even giving pandas Viagra and showing sex videos to help them mate and get pregnant. But new research suggests that the pandas' daily diet could be a key reason for their plummeting numbers.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have found that bamboo, a food that is served in excess, may be the cause of intestinal disorders in pandas in zoos and consequently makes it difficult for them to become pregnant.

Back in 2003, researchers conducted a root-cure study on a bunch of pandas at the Memphis Zoo: Yaya and Lele. This team found seasonal changes in the pandas' eating habits: in the spring and dynamics, the pandas basically ate only bamboo stems; in the summer, 59% of their diet shifted to bamboo leaves. This shift is compelling. "We suspect that it is the bamboo stalks that disrupt the gastrointestinal function of the pandas, which forces them to switch to eating bamboo leaves in the summer", says Garrett, a professor of bacteriology at the university: "The stalks are really rough, and while the pandas are digesting them, these sharp edges scrape the gut, causing an inflammatory response ".

The sharp bamboo sticks can cause detachment of the panda's gastrointestinal lining, as confirmed by the mucus in the feces. This process is very unpleasant for the panda. When pandas start to pull out mucus, they usually act lethargic, stop feeding and are in pain. Unfortunately, winter and spring come just after the panda breeding season, when most female pandas are pregnant.

Researchers believe that gastrointestinal problems can affect the development of embryos and even lead to fetal death in young pandas. The three-month period between mating and embryo implantation is a difficult time for pandas, and the gastrointestinal problems caused by bamboo do not bode well for the young, as they need sufficient applications to ensure proper embryo growth during pregnancy.

Suen says it is important to consider providing better quality food for pandas during the mating season, such as reducing the number of bamboo poles and increasing the supply of bamboo leaves, which might make the panda's diet less coarse. From our point of view, diet is crucial to panda reproduction.