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A sharp rise in the numbers of giant pandas in the wild means they may lose their status as an "endangered" animal.

The population of the bears in China has jumped by 17 per cent in a decade, from 1,600 up to 1,864.

They have been listed as endangered since 1990 but this may soon be downgraded to “vulnerable” following the rise.

Bear specialists at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Swiss-based body which classifies rare species on its “red list”, are currently reviewing the status of the giant panda in light of the findings, which come from a Chinese national survey.

The organisation will soon reveal whether the classification has changed and Chinese officials are optimistic.

Craig Hilton-Taylor, who is in charge of the red list unit at the IUCN, told the Times that the population rise is down to scientists finding better methods of encouraging pandas to breed in captivity.

He said: “Once a better understanding of biology and behaviour was incorporated into husbandry, captive pandas began to mate naturally and experienced exponential population growth.”