Zoo keepers in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality began
implanting digital identification chips in animals on Tuesday to
strengthen their management, the first such move in the
country.
Three stitching-needle-sized chips, containing information about
the animal's name, age, gender, species, birth date and birthplace,
blood type, and DNA, among others, were injected into the necks of
an eight-year-old Siberian tiger, a seven-year-old African lioness
and a five-year-old African lion raised at the Chongqing Zoo on
Tuesday.
The chips, comprising a 64-bit code of binary numbers system,
are radio frequency implants that are widely used worldwide to
identify and manage animals, said Yin Yuzhong, the zoo's deputy
head.
"With such a chip, each animal owns a code exclusive to itself,
in addition to its country and regional code. The digital ID chips
will be helpful for the identification and management of animals,
breeding control and epidemic prevention."
Chips will be implanted into more than 120 animals that belong
to 20 species raised in the Chongqing Zoo this year.
Chongqing Zoo is one of the largest in China with more than
4,000 animals of more than 230 species.
The Beijing Zoo will join Chongqing next month as the first two
zoos in the country to launch such a program and help animals "go
digital".
Nationwide, all zoos are now required by the State Forestry
Administration to implant digital ID chips in 17 species of animals
this year. These included tigers, lions, elephants, giant panda,
bears, golden monkeys, cranes and swans.
Beijing piloted the implanting program by putting similar
digital chips in dogs last year to strengthen the management of its
canine population, estimated at more than 1 million, and to curb
the spread of rabies.
Xicheng District in downtown Beijing, where more than 10,000
dogs were registered, piloted the program before it was introduced
to the rest of the city, according to the dog registration
department of the local police authorities.
(Xinhua News Agency February 20, 2008)
