TAO

Panda archive

Tao Tao (#777)

淘淘

alive male Born August 3, 2010

Tao Tao (淘淘, studbook #777) was the world's second captive-born panda released into the wild, and the first successfully adapted. Born August 3, 2010 at Wolong's rewilding base to mother Cao Cao (草草) and father Lu Lu (芦芦), he was raised entirely by his mother without human contact. Released October 11, 2012 into Liziping Nature Reserve, he survived and established a territory, proving the mother-rearing method works.

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Start with the profile, then expand into the archive around this panda

This page brings together the core facts, timeline, family graph, media, place journey, and related reading for Tao Tao.

Profile Timeline Family network Media Connected archive

Profile snapshot

Quick facts

Birth date

August 3, 2010

Birth place

China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda

Current location

Wild (Sichuan)

Status

Alive

Studbook

#777

Archive activity

5 updates · 0 media

Narrative

Life story

Start with a concise summary, then continue into the full narrative record for Tao Tao.

Short version

Basic Profile

Tao Tao (Chinese: 淘淘, studbook number 777) is a male giant panda born on August 3, 2010 at 4:24 AM at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP) Wolong Hetaoping Rewilding Training Base. He was the first giant panda ever born in a rewilding training enclosure.

His mother is Cao Cao (草草, sb581) — a wild-born female rescued in 2003 who became a pioneering rewilding mother. His father is Lu Lu (芦芦, sb503), a wild-born male from Lushan.

Tao Tao’s name means “Naughty” or “Wash/Select” — chosen because he was the selective result of the rewilding program.

The Mother-Rearing Method

Tao Tao was the first panda trained using the mother-rearing method (母兽带仔野化培训), developed after 祥祥 (Xiang Xiang)‘s death in 2007 revealed the failure of human-rearing.

Key Principles

No human contact: All personnel wore panda costumes (伪装服) smeared with panda scent when near the enclosure
Mother teaches: Cao Cao taught Tao Tao all survival skills — foraging, climbing, predator avoidance, den building
Natural environment: The training enclosures simulated wild conditions with native bamboo, steep terrain, and natural water sources

Training Phases

Phase I (Birth – Feb 2011): 2,400 m² enclosure — basic bonding and nursing with mother
Phase II (Feb 2011 – May 2012): 40,000 m² enclosure at 2,050–2,140m elevation — climbing, foraging, orientation skills
Phase III (May – Oct 2012): 240,000 m² enclosure at 2,150–2,500m elevation — advanced survival including predator recognition

Natural Disasters

During training, Tao Tao and his mother survived:

August 13, 2010: Catastrophic mudslide
March 21, 2011: 40cm snowfall — they found shelter under large trees where bamboo was still accessible
July 3, 2011: Torrential rain and mudslide

Predator Training

Researchers placed a fake leopard with recorded leopard calls along Tao Tao’s path. During a June 2012 test, Tao Tao immediately fled over 100 meters upon encountering the decoy — demonstrating successful predator recognition.

Release into the Wild

On October 7, 2012, Tao Tao was lured into a transport cage after a 2-hour operation at 2,100m elevation. He was driven over 400 km to Liziping National Nature Reserve in Shimian County, Ya’an.

On October 11, 2012, at 10:13 AM, State Forestry Administrator Zhao Shucong and Sichuan Vice Governor Zhong Mian opened the transport cage. Unlike 祥祥 who ran off immediately, Tao Tao hesitantly stepped out, looked around, and slowly disappeared into the bamboo forest.

This release was hailed as a milestone: Xiang Xiang’s death had shown what NOT to do; Tao Tao’s mother-rearing approach offered a new path forward.

Post-Release Survival

Recapture and Health Check (2013)

On December 28, 2013, monitoring teams unexpectedly found Tao Tao in a recapture cage at Liziping. Veterinarians conducted a full health check:

Weight: 115 kg (healthy for a 3-year-old wild male)
Overall condition: Excellent
GPS collar: Replaced with new one

He was re-released on December 29, 2013.

Long-term Survival

Tao Tao was monitored for at least 5 years post-release — the longest survival record for any rewilded captive-born panda at the time. He established a stable territory, foraged independently, and showed appropriate avoidance of humans and predators.

Legacy

Tao Tao’s success proved that the mother-rearing method was viable. Key achievements:

First panda born in a rewilding enclosure
First successfully adapted rewilded captive panda
Lived 5+ years in the wild (record at the time)
Paved the way for subsequent releases: Zhang Xiang (张想), Hua Jiao (华姣), Hua Yan (华妍), Zhang Meng (张梦)

The program’s survival rate improved from 0% (Xiang Xiang, human-reared) to 87.5% (7 of 8 mother-reared pandas survived) thanks largely to lessons learned from Tao Tao’s journey.

Evidence

Life timeline

Key updates and milestone events tied to Tao Tao.

5 updates

2013 (1)

Conservation Dec 28, 2013

Tao Tao Recaptured for Health Check, Found Healthy

Monitoring teams found Tao Tao in a recapture cage at Liziping. He weighed 115 kg, was in excellent health, and was re-released the next day.

2012 (1)

Conservation Oct 11, 2012

Tao Tao Released into Liziping Nature Reserve

Tao Tao became the second captive-born panda released into the wild, and the first using the mother-rearing method. State Forestry Administrator Zhao Shucong opened the cage at 10:13 AM.

2011 (1)

Transfer Jul 26, 2011

Tao Tao transferred to wild_fuping

Tao Tao moved to wild_fuping.

2010 (2)

Birth Aug 3, 2010

Tao Tao Born at Wolong Rewilding Base

Tao Tao (淘淘), the first panda ever born in a rewilding training enclosure, was born at 4:24 AM to mother Cao Cao at Wolong's Hetaoping base.

Birth Aug 3, 2010

Cao Cao Gives Birth to Tao Tao at Rewilding Base

Cao Cao gave birth to Tao Tao, the first panda ever born in a rewilding training enclosure. He would go on to become the first successfully adapted rewilded panda.

Knowledge graph

Family and network

See the core family graph first, then continue through related pandas and archive themes.

Father Mother Half-siblings (grouped)

He He #1142 Hua Jiao #866 Mei Mei #1143

Tao Tao has 24 half-siblings. The majority share the same father, Lu Lu , indicating a highly prolific paternal lineage.

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Tao Tao (#777)

Start with the profile, then expand into the archive around this panda

Quick facts

Life story

Basic Profile

The Mother-Rearing Method

Key Principles

Training Phases

Natural Disasters

Predator Training

Release into the Wild

Post-Release Survival

Recapture and Health Check (2013)

Long-term Survival

Legacy

Life timeline

Tao Tao Recaptured for Health Check, Found Healthy

Tao Tao Released into Liziping Nature Reserve

Tao Tao transferred to wild_fuping

Tao Tao Born at Wolong Rewilding Base

Cao Cao Gives Birth to Tao Tao at Rewilding Base

Family and network

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