Pan Wenshi

Who is Pan Wenshi?

Pan Wenshi is China's premier panda biologist. He serves as the Director of the Giant Panda and Wildlife Conservation Research Center at Peking University. His work proved that panda habitat needed to be protected for them to survive in the wild and that pandas are polygamous, where previously it was thought that a dominant male secured exclusive breeding rights.

Pan was born in Bangkok, Thailand in 1937 where his family had lived for five generations. When he was three years old, he moved with his parents to Shantou in Guangdong province.

Pan studied biology at Peking University. His first experience with Pandas was seeing the world's first captive-born panda at the Beijing zoo where he got to hold the infant panda.

He has also helped save the White-headed Langur species through his work at the Nongguan Nature Reserve in Chongzuo, China. His work to save the Langurs focused on both protecting the species, and improving the lives of the nearby villagers who were competing for resources with the Langurs. The population of Langurs declined from 2,000 in the late 1980s to just 96 when Pan began his work in 1996. Through Pan's efforts, the population has since climbed to over 500 in 2008.