Red Panda Factfile
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Scientific Name : Ailurus fulgens
World Distribution
Red pandas are found in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains in Burma, Tibet, Nepal and China.
Habitat
They live in cool, wet mountain forests which have a mixture of tall coniferous and deciduous trees and thick bamboo undergrowth. They usually hang out in the tree branches, where they are safe from most predators (pandas are not fast runners).
Feeding
Like their cousins the giant pandas, their main diet is bamboo. However, they also eat berries, roots and grasses, and occasionally things like birds eggs, small birds and mice. This diet is rather low in energy content, so red pandas move slowly and spend a lot of time resting in order to save energy.
Predators
Snow leopards are the main predator of red pandas (they can climb trees). Baby cubs are often eatin by yellow-necked martens.
Breeding
For most
of the year, males and females live separately and alone. At mating time males
seek out females, sometimes fighting off rivals.
Pregnancy lasts for 4 - 5 months, after which 1 - 4 cubs are born in a cosy
nest that the female has made ready in a tree hollow.
The young are blind for the first couple of weeks. They will stay in the nest for 3 months, totally dependent on their mother's care. After this they start to fend for themselves, but they may stay in contact with their mother until they are 18 months old and ready to breed themselves.
Other interesting facts
- The word "panda"
comes from a Nepalese word which means "eater of bamboo"
- Red pandas are agile
climbers, able to descend trees head first, using their long tail for
balance.
- The colour and markings
of the red panda provide good camouflage int the trees, which are often
covered with reddish lichen.
- Red pandas are under
threat in the wild; they do not adapt well to other habitats when their
forests are cut down, particularly because of their dependency on bamboo
as food.
- An enlarged bone
in the red panda's wrist acts as an extra thumb which comes in useful
when climbing or grasping food.
Facts and Figures |
|
Name |
Red panda |
Type of animal |
mammal |
Where found |
Asia |
Habitat |
cool mountain forests |
Diet |
herbivorous |
Average length |
56 cm |
Average weight |
4.5 kg |
Average number of young per year |
2 |
Gestation |
134 days |
Maximum lifespan |
13 |