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Happy Panda Day! The GiantPanda is perhaps the most powerful symbol in the world when it comes to nature conservation. Thanks to decades of sustained conservation work, pandas were downgraded from ‘Endangered’ to ‘Vulnerable’ on the global list of species at risk of extinction in 2016. There are now an estimated 1,860 pandas in the wild. But there is still more work to be done to help this iconic species on the path to recovery. Habitat loss and fragmentation are still major threats to their survival. Panda habitats are vitally important for other threatened and endangered species, including golden snub-nosed monkeys, takins, red pandas and snow leopards The panda’s forest environment is also important for local people – for food, income and fuel for cooking and heating. By protecting pandas we’re helping conserve the wider environment, for the people and wildlife that depend on it ❤️