INFO: Common Name: Red Panda
Scientific Name: Ailurus fulgens
Type: Mammals
Diet: Herbivores
Average life span in The Wild: 8 years
Size: Head and body, 20 to 26 in; tail, 12 to 20 in
Weight: 12 to 20 lbs
Status: Endangered
Population: Less than 10000
Country
Name
Finland
kultapanda (gold panda)
Bulgarian
червена панда (red panda)
French
panda roux (red panda)
Spanish
panda rojo (red panda)
German
Roter Panda (red panda)
Dutch
kleine panda (small panda)
Russian
малая панда (malaya panda, "small panda")
Korean
애기판다 (aeki panda, "baby panda")
Japanese
レッサーパンダ (ressā panda, a transliteration of English "lesser panda")
Red Panda Sound
DIET: Red pandas are excellent climbers, and forage largely in trees. They eat mostly bamboo, and may eat small mammals, birds, eggs, flowers, and berries. In captivity, they were observed to eat birds, flowers, maple and mulberry leaves, and bark and fruits of maple, beech, and mulberry.
Like the giant panda, they cannot digest cellulose, so they must consume a large volume of bamboo to survive. Their diets consist of about two-thirds bamboo, but they also eat mushrooms, roots, acorns, lichens, and grasses. Occasionally, they supplement their diets with fish and insects. They do little more than eat and sleep due to their low-calorie diets.
Bamboo shoots are more easily digested than leaves, exhibiting the highest digestibility in summer and autumn, intermediate digestibility in the spring, and lowest digestibility in the winter. These variations correlate with the nutrient contents in the bamboo. Red pandas process bamboo poorly, especially the cellulose and cell wall components. This implies microbial digestion plays only a minor role in their digestive strategy. To survive on this poor-quality diet, they have to eat the high-quality sections of the bamboo plant, such as the tender leaves and shoots, in large quantities, over 1.5 kg (3.3 lb) of fresh leaves and 4 kg (8.8 lb) of fresh shoots daily. This food passes through the digestive tract fairly rapidly (about 2-4 hr) so as to maximize daily nutrient intake. Red pandas can taste artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame, and are the only nonprimates known to be able to do so.
Red Panda Eats:
Bamboo
Leaves
Shoots
Small mammals
birds
Eggs
Flowers
Berries
Maple
Mulberry leaves
Bark
Fruits of maple, beech, and mulberry
Fish
Mushroom
Roots
Acorns
Lichens
Grasses
Fish
Insects
BEHAVIOUR:
The red panda is territorial; it is solitary except during mating season. The species is generally quiet except for some twittering, tweeting, and whistling communication sounds. It has been reported to be both nocturnal and crepuscular, sleeping on tree branches or in tree hollows during the day and increasing its activity in the late afternoon and early evening hours. It sleeps stretched out on a branch with legs dangling when it is hot, and curled up with its tail over the face when it is cold. This animal is very heat-sensitive, with an optimal �well-being� temperature between 17 and 25 �C (63 and 77 �F), and cannot tolerate temperatures over 25 �C (77 �F)
Shortly after waking, red pandas clean their fur somewhat like a cat would, licking their front paws and then rubbing their backs, torsos, and sides. They also rub their backs and bellies along the sides of trees or rocks. Then they patrol their territories, marking with urine and a weak musk-smelling secretion from their anal glands. They search for food running along the ground or through the trees. Red pandas may use their forepaws alternately to bring food to their mouths or place food directly into their mouths.
Predators of the red panda include the snow leopard, mustelids, and humans. If they feel threatened or sense danger, they may try to escape by climbing a rock column or tree. If they can no longer flee, they stand on their hind legs to make themselves appear larger and use the sharp claws on their front paws to defend themselves. A red panda, Futa, became a visitor attraction in Japan for his ability to stand upright for ten seconds at a time. (See also: facultative biped)
