The total oxidation of ethane was studied over Pd/alpha-Al2O3 catalysts in an oxygen rich atmosphere. After palladium reduction by hydrogen treatment at 573 K it was found that catalysts became more active with time on stream. The increase in activity is a consequence of bulk palladium oxide formation. The extent of palladium oxidation at the steady state was determined by oxygen uptake measurements before and after the reaction at 573 K and by hydrogen titration at 323 K after the reaction. A previous oxidation or a high temperature treatment of the reaction mixture did not affect the level of activity and a time dependent activation process was not observed. The catalytic activity of palladium does not depend on the initial metal dispersion. Moreover, the rate of reaction was found to depend on the total amount of palladium. This result suggests that under reaction conditions all palladium atoms become active for C2H6 oxidation.