This Sunday saw the launch of the "panda census" in Mianyang, southwest China's Sichuan Province, which is home to the largest national panda nature reserve in China, the Chengdu Business Daily reports.

According to Yang Xuyu, who is the Director of Wildlife Resources Management in the Forestry Department of Sichuan Province, 70 staff members from the State Forestry Administration will take the survey in the Wanglang National Nature Reserve.

The national panda census is taken once every ten years. The last census held in 2000 showed that there were 1,596 pandas in China - 1,206 of which live in Sichuan.

The census will record information about the DNA taken from fresh panda stools. This is the most accurate testing method at the moment.

The staff will collect information about the number of pandas as well as their living conditions, ages, daily activities and their habitat.

(CRIENGLISH.com June 27, 2011)