Do we need pandas? Choosing which species to save

Captive breeding programmes can be hugely expensive and resource consuming, as is the case for the giant panda. Perhaps scarce conservation resources are better focused elsewhere, on other species, or targeted to specific habitats rather than organisms per se. Now you will have a chance to participate in a live debate on these issues, at a joint event that the Linnean Society is hosting in collaboration with the Society for Biology, at the start of the ‘Biology Week' on Monday 15th October.

This evening meeting will take the format of a debate on the motion ‘Do we need pandas? Choosing which species to save'.

In the Chair, we will have Sue Nelson, the award-winning science journalist and radio/TV broadcaster, recipient of the Association of British Science Writer's Award. The 4-member panel will include Simon Watt, an evolutionary biologist and occasional TV presenter, most recently as a presenter on Channel 4's ‘Inside Natures Giants. Ready, Steady, Science!' and Mark Avery, ex Conservation Director of the RSPB.