Panda falls out of tree and sparks minor brawl in CCTV footage

Other pandas take the opportune moment to steal bear's bamboo

A panda fell out of a tree and prompted a minor brawl with other bears, in footage caught on CCTV at a Chinese nature reserve.

Video shows the giant panda drop to the ground after a branch snaps at Wolong Giant Panda Nature Reserve, Sichuan, causing the animal to lose its grip of the bamboo it appears to have been collecting.

Two other pandas in the enclosure, who are visibly surprised by the fall, can then be seen trying to take the sticks, leading to a minor brawl.

The three bears can be seen trying to grab the bamboo off each other. A fourth panda enters the scene but it is unclear what happens next.

It comes after CCTV footage in August captured the surprise moment a giant panda unexpectedly gave birth to two cubs at Vienna's Schoenbrunn Zoo, after it was thought she had only given birth to one.

In September, it was declared that giant pandas were no longer endangered in an announcement hailed by conservationalists as "hugely encouraging" and "a cause for celebration".

The giant panda’s comeback has been attributed to a successful conservation programme by the Chinese government that focused on restoring its habitat of forests with an ample supply of bamboo.

According to Chinese officials, a survey carried out between 1998 and 2002 found there were 1,596 giant pandas living in the wild, but the latest survey, conducted between 2011 to 2014, found evidence of 1,864.