Posted by Snow in 
The news is out that a British scientists has dared to utter the words nobody ever thought to hear ; “Panda should just die out”. One man’s online comment to a news commentator in UK Britain and the backlash has bloomed. But are pandas an economic luxury or a scarce good?
A BBC Nature TV host aired his controversial comment and has received a flurry of outraged responses. Evidently enthusiasm for cuddly things and sustainable living are at odds in the matter of the panda. Letting them die off because they are draining souvenir purses does not seem sustainably sound to all.
Asking the question as a naturalist, Chris Packham observes that pandas are not very good at reproduction and consumer too much. This is a sound analysis, but its does not atke into account all the natural outcomes from panda adoption and tourism related economic markets. Pandas are a global symbol that bring people together, an entity by no means in short supply.
On the one hand, the man has a point. Pandas are very intensive consumers of bamboo and need constant care and attention. But they also furnish income and revenue to cash strapped museum gift shops. Pandas require US $1 million in rental fees for the American public to enjoy.
It’s strange that a country with such an unusual overpopulation problem and a caution on more than one child per family has a national animal synonymous with their image with such a troubled birth rate.
Pandas are perhaps valued for their scarcity, but if they were more plentiful every zoo would be stuffed with visitors. Without the “cuteness” factor, pandas as a species might have been dead by now. Perhaps like young mammals, their cuteness protects them from harsh conditions and fosters pampering by maternal social figures.
Holy Bamboo, batman! Pandas are cutest most cuddly images on the planet. It’s not hard to imagine people freaking out at the possibility they can’t get their panda on when needed. I confess some much needed solace in the midnight hours has come from Panda cam watching. Especially at night, when the climbing and crawling and bamboo binges kick in.
Yes, pandas consumer resources. they also amuse people, spark a tourism industry and zoo attendance, and sell stuffed animals and related merchandise. That they bring focus to the support of animals has to be a sustainable value at some point.
Compare this expense and outcome to a national sports franchise. Another popular public darling some say is dying out. Would people rather watch a big screen LCD than attend games? Shouldn’t we just stop building mega billion dollars stadiums and build other resources which are needed?
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