The CCRCGP is home to about 200 giant pandas, which the scientists recorded, and then analyzed their voices during various activities, such as eating, mating, nursing, and fighting.
"Trust me. Our researchers were so confused when we began the project that they wondered if they were studying a panda, a bird, a dog, or a sheep," Zhang Hemin, head of the CCRCGP, told Xinhua.
Zhang explained that the first language used by panda cubs is "Gee-Gee" (I'm hungry), "Wow-Wow" (Not happy!) or "Coo-Coo" (Nice!), before they learn more language.
"Adult giant pandas usually are solitary, so the only language teacher they have is their own mother," he said.
"If a panda mother keeps tweeting like a bird, she may be anxious about her babies. She barks loudly when a stranger comes near," said the scientist.
Scientists at the center have been working on the panda language project since 2010, and intend to continue the study by making a panda translator using voice recognition technology.
According to the latest giant panda census, in 2014 there were 1,864 giant pandas left in the wild. In the last decade, the number of giant pandas has risen by 17 percent, thanks to efforts to conserve their habitat, including a ban on logging in place since 1998, and the work of the Chinese authorities to create new reserves and crack down on poaching.
