Two men detained in China for claiming male giant pandas had ‘successfully mated’

Authorities opened an investigation after receiving reports that online accounts were circulating fake news screenshot about Chengdu

Chinese authorities have detained two men for allegedly spreading false information claiming that two male giant pandas had successfully mated in the wild, according to police.

Authorities said they opened an investigation after receiving reports that online accounts were circulating a fake screenshot about the city of Chengdu, Chinese media reported citing a statement from the Chengdu Public Security Bureau.

The image carried the headline: “Chengdu: two male Sichuan giant pandas successfully mate in the wild for the first time.”

The men, identified by police only by their surnames Dong, 29, from Liaoning province, and Gao, 33, from Zhejiang province, were found to have “deliberately distorted facts” and used “technical means” to forge the image, the statement said.

Authorities said the pair posted the fabricated content online to attract attention, leading to what police described as “widespread false interpretations”, disruption of online order, and a “negative social impact”.

Both men were placed under administrative detention and their online accounts were shut down, police said, citing laws against spreading false information and disturbing public order.

The case was first reported by Chinese state media outlet Global Times, which said the claim was false and that male giant pandas in Chengdu were not engaging in same-sex mating behaviour. Chengdu is home to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, a major panda conservation centre.

The Washington Post reported that the image circulating online appeared to have been generated or altered using artificial intelligence, and that it spread widely on social media before being removed.

Chinese authorities did not reference the sexuality of the pandas in their official statement and framed the detentions as a case of fabricated news and online misinformation.

China’s internet is heavily censored and controlled and the country has strict laws over spreading AI generated misinformation. In 2023, Chinese police arrested a man they alleged used ChatGPT to create a fake news article about a train crash.