There are two known species of Pandas today: the Red Panda and the Giant Panda. Despite them sharing a name, the two pandas are not related. The red Panda has a characteristic rusty shade and is relatively smaller than the other species. The scientific name of this animal is Ailurus fulgens (Akshay). Despite their bear-like appearance, the red pandas are not at all bears. They appear as a hybrid of a fox and a cat. They have an average height of 24 inches and weigh about 13 pounds. Red pandas have long, bushy tails, an adaptation to keep them warm while sleeping and for balance when climbing trees (WWF, “Red Panda | Species | WWF”). They are found in China, Nepal, Bhutan, and India. Unlike the giant pandas, red pandas prefer to inhabit dense coniferous forests, particularly on the Himalayan slopes (Akshay).
Additionally, they prefer the mountains to lowland bamboo, similar to the giant Panda. Bamboo is the main diet of both the giant and the red panda species. However, the latter enjoys wild berries, mushrooms, and grass.
The giant Panda, also known as the Panda bear, is a bear species. This species is indigenous to China. Giant Pandas are mammals of the order Carnivora and Genus Ailuropoda. Unlike the red Panda, giant pandas have a characteristic white and black coat of fur and stout bodies. This panda species is the most common due to its color pattern. Although Pandas appear different, scientists have established a close relationship between Pandas and Bears. The posture, climbing technique, and body structure of these two animals are pretty much the same. Research indicates that this panda species is a real bear of the family Ursidae(WWF, “Giant Panda | Species | WWF”).
Moreover, giant pandas are considered as gentle as most bears. The average height of a giant panda ranges between five and six, feet-almost the same height as a human. Females can weigh up to 200 pounds, with males attaining up to 300 pounds. The world’s population of giant pandas inhabit the mountains of southwestern China in damp and misty forests (Lindburg). Research suggests that giant pandas require more than just bamboo to establish a suitable habitat. These animals require old-growth conifer forests with at least two varieties of bamboo and water for survival. The old-growth conifers provide tree stumps and hollow logs for panda dens (WWF, “Giant Panda | Species | WWF”). Pandas’ home is estimated to be an average of 5 square kilometers, with the males having wider ranges than females. Similar to bears, giant pandas spend most of their life eating. They spend an average of 16 hours a day feeding. Bamboo is a panda’s favorite and most important plant.
Naturally, bamboo is low on nutrients, so pandas have to eat it daily. Pandas have adaptations to enable them to feed on bamboo. Their paws consist of a pseudo-thumb and four fingers. The thumb holds bamboo in place during feeding. Their strong jawbones and cheek muscles enable them to chew the thick bamboo stalks (Lindburg). Apart from bamboo, giant pandas feed on grass, fruits, rodents, and even insects. In conservation areas or zoos, pandas are fed carrots, apples, yams, and special biscuits. Despite these adaptations, this panda species has a carnivorous digestive system and cannot digest cellulose in bamboo. As a response mechanism, pandas pass voluminous grass through their digestive tract daily, which translates into defecating up to 50 times a day (Akshay).
The family life of giant pandas is quite intriguing. They are solitary animals that spend most of their day eating and sleeping. Due to the high bamboo consumption daily, a collision of two bears results in a fight. Each Panda takes its own space so that two is a crowd. Mating and birthing are the only two social activities that pandas engage in (Lindburg). Mating occurs around spring and lasts up to three days, while birth season coincides with fall. Although they are solitary, giant pandas recognize other pandas by scent. This characteristic is essential during mating. The scent emanates from a scent gland located below their tails (WWF, “Giant Panda | Species | WWF”). Pandas rub this gland against trees, grass, or rocks when they intend to leave olfactory messages of their identity or sex to other pandas. Female pandas searching for a mate “leave” their scent around for willing males. While females use the scents to signal their need for a mate, males use scents to identify their dens.
The reproduction rate of Pandas is very slow, with females being viable for breeding once in two or three years. Typical female pandas bear about five cubs in their lifetime. Giant pandas have an average gestation period of 135 days, characterized by delayed implantation two to three months after mating (Lindburg). At birth, giant pandas have no fur and are helpless, confining their mothers to the den. The mothers give care to their cub by cradling it on one paw and holding it close to their chest. Mother pandas cannot care for more than one cub despite the high chances of bearing twin cubs. The mothers do not leave their dens to feed or drink for several days after birth. 60 days from birth, the cub’s eyes open, and at 10 weeks, they crawl.
The cub can walk at 5 months and starts to play with its mother while attempting to chew bamboo at 7 to 9 months. The cubs are nursed until 18 months, when they are sent off on their own (WWF, “Giant Panda | Species | WWF”). A giant panda at the age of 2.5 years is considered safe from predators. The common predators of panda cubs include the weasel and the golden cat. For safety, panda cubs scamper to high trees and stay there waiting for their mothers to return. The blend of black and white color of their fur enables them to camouflage on tree tops and shadows. The estimated lifespan of a wild Panda is 20 years, with an average of 30 years for pandas in captivity.
Pandas have continued to be endangered despite various efforts to save them. Although they have reduced or no known predators, pandas have faced the risk of extinction. Human threats form the major threat to panda existence (Obermann). Reports indicate that the world population of wild pandas is slightly over 1800. In the years leading to 2016, the pandas were classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, after which they are considered vulnerable. Although pandas are endeared to many people, as indicated by the numerous efforts to increase their population, they still face a series of threats.
Habitat destruction is the main threat to panda existence. Once, wild pandas were known to inhabit the bamboo forests of China, Vietnam, and Burma. The panda habitats in temperate regions have tremendously reduced due to the growing human population. The growth of the Chinese population to over a billion people has necessitated the need to clear forested areas for settlement. The infrastructural development in China’s Yangtze basin-pandas primary habitat has resulted in fragmentation and isolation of panda populations (Cook).
Additionally, people have continued to harvest trees and other natural resources for commercial and subsistence purposes. Following these developments, it becomes increasingly difficult for pandas to find new bamboo forests and mates. Moreover, the loss of forest cover reduces Panda’s access to the much-needed bamboo for survival. Records indicate that between 1974 and 1985, the panda habitat was reduced by half following logging and farming activities in China (Obermann). In other cases, clearing the forest has resulted in the destruction of panda dens, leaving panda cubs vulnerable to cold, diseases, and predators. Pandas have had to live in habitats surrounded by farms and other human activities, making it unsafe for them to walk freely without encountering humans.
Secondly, Panda’s low rate of reproduction increases the risk of their extinction. Given their solitary nature and short breeding season, pandas have reduced their chances of multiplying. Furthermore, female pandas are unable to care for more than one cub (Lindburg). This implies that in case a wild panda bears twin cubs, one will be left to die. Although this situation can be controlled in a zoo scenario, it remains difficult to alter the survival rate of wild cubs.
Just like other animals, Pandas are often faced with food shortage-in their case, bamboo shortages. This crisis emanates from the natural life cycle of the bamboo plant. Mature bamboo plants flower and then produce seeds before dying. The seeds develop into plants suitable enough for the pandas to eat. Apparently, with bamboo plants, a particular kind grows and dies simultaneously (WWF, “Giant Panda | Species | WWF”). Therefore if there are limited bamboo varieties within a pandas home, the animal will struggle with bamboo shortage sometime. Often when the bamboos die, pandas migrate to other parts of the forest. Therefore in the case of limited bamboo forests, pandas will starve to death.
Another notorious human threat to panda existence is hunting. Hunting and poaching have been the primary reason why the world’s endangered wildlife species are categorized as so. Even though pandas are rarely hunted, they share habitats with other hunted animals (Obermann). Pandas may get caught in traps set for animals like deer and pigs. The traps end up killing the pandas, thus reducing their population. In extreme cases, wild pandas are poached for their skins for the black markets. Poaching of the Panda attracts heavy penalties for anyone caught in it. The red Panda is highly endangered following the illegal pet trade of the animal. This panda species has an appealing color and is relatively small such that people consider them cute and personable as pets. Often, domesticated red pandas die due to a lack of proper care. Moreover, poachers kill the red Panda for its body parts which are believed to have medicinal properties (Cook). Although it is illegal to buy and sell those medicine, black markets operate unhinged.
Works Cited
Akshay. “Different Species of Pandas and Where to Find Them – Nature Safari India.” Www.naturesafariindia.com, 28 Mar. 2022, www.naturesafariindia.com/different-species-of-pandas-and-where-to-find-them/#:~:text=There%20are%20basically%203%20types.
Cook, Maria. “Why Are the Red Pandas Endangered?” Sciencing, 2018, sciencing.com/red-pandas-endangered-6775531.html.
Lindburg, Donald G. “Giant Panda | Facts, Habitat, Population, & Diet.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 10 May 2018, www.britannica.com/animal/giant-panda.
Obermann, Kyle. “China Declares Pandas No Longer Endangered—but Threats Persist.” Animals, 1 Sept. 2021, www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/pandas-are-off-chinas-endangered-list-but-threats-persist.
WWF. “Giant Panda | Species | WWF.” World Wildlife Fund, 2000, www.worldwildlife.org/species/giant-panda.
—. “Red Panda | Species | WWF.” World Wildlife Fund, 2020, www.worldwildlife.org/species/red-panda.
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