CHENGDU, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- A rare moment of intimacy between a wild giant panda mother and her cub was captured by infrared cameras in a nature reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, the reserve said Friday.

Photos taken in April show the mother with her cub foraging for food in the Dafengding National Nature Reserve. Both pandas looked strong and healthy.

"The smaller panda is believed to have been born in 2017, about one and a half years old," according to Fang Kui, head of the nature reserve administration.

During surveillance in September last year, a two-month-old giant panda cub was also spotted sleeping in a den a few kilometers from the site. "In recent years, the habitat of giant pandas in the area has been well-preserved and the pandas are able to act normally and reproduce freely," said Fang.

Dafengding is an important wild panda protection area within Sichuan. It is the fourth time since 2012 that a giant panda cub and its mother have been photographed in the reserve.

Giant pandas mainly live in Sichuan's mountainous area, while some can be found in neighboring Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.