Zhang Xiang was raised by humans and has been given survival lessons at a training base at her nature reserve since birth.
Until recently Zhang was living with her mother in a semi-wild environment at the centre to prepare her for life on the outside.
But researchers have now decided it is now time to release her, as she has acquired all of the skills she needs to survive alone, including independently finding food and water, differentiating between enemies and friends, and finding ways to escape from danger.
To make the young panda’s journey less traumatic, Zhang’s keepers dressed up in panda suits, and covered themselves in panda scent, before separating the 40kg bear from its mother.
After having a full health examination, Zhang was moved to the Niziping Nature Reserve where she will spend two weeks ‘transitioning’ before being released fully into the wild.
Young Zhang Xiang has been fitted with a GPS tracker to check her progress.
Zhan will be the third giant panda in China to be reintroduced to its natural habitat in seven years.
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