| General Non-Fiction posted December 31, 2014 |
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Non-fiction educational.Panda
The Panda
by patcelaw
The Panda
The panda "black and white cat-foot" also known as panda bear or the giant panda to distinguish it from the unrelated red panda, is a bear native to south-central China. It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body. The panda's diet is more than 99% bamboo. Pandas in the wild will occasionally eat other grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of birds, rodents or carrion. In captivity, they may receive honey, eggs, fish, yams, shrub leaves, oranges, or bananas along with specially prepared food.
The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan province. Because of farming, deforestation, and development, the panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived.
The panda is an endangered species. In a 2007 report show, there are 239 pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27 outside the country. Estimates vary as how many pandas are in the wild. One estimate shows that there are about 1,590 individuals living in the wild. A 2006 study, estimated that this figure could be as many as 2,000 to 3,000. Some reports show that the number of pandas in the wild is on the rise. However, it is not believed there are enough to take them from endangered class.
The dragon has served as China's national emblem, but internationally the panda appears to be as common. As such, it is becoming widely used within China in international contexts. An example is one of the five mascots of the Beijing Olympics was the panda.
The giant panda has a black-and-white coat. Adults measure around four to six feet long, including a tail of 3.9--5.9 inches. It is 2.0 to 3.0 feet tall at the shoulder. Males can weigh up to 350 pounds. Females are 10--20% smaller than males and can weigh as little as 150 pounds, but can also weigh up to 276 pounds. Average adult weight is 220 to 254 pounds.
The giant panda has a body shape typical of bears. It has black fur on its ears, eye patches, muzzle, legs, arms and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Though scientists don't know why these bears are black and white. It is speculated the bold coloring provides good camouflage in the shade-dappled snowy and rocky of their habitat. The giant panda's thick, the furry coat keeps it warm in the cool forests.
The giant panda's paw has a thumb and five fingers; the thumb helps it to hold bamboo while eating.
The tail of the giant panda measures four to six inches, which is the second-longest tail in the bear family. The longest belongs to the sloth bear.
The giant panda lives to about 20 years in the wild and can live up to 30 years in captivity. The oldest captive, a female named Ming Ming, had a recorded age of 34 years.
In the wild, the giant panda is an earthbound animal and spends its life roaming and feeding in the bamboo forests in China. Giant pandas are generally loners, with each adult having a defined territory. The female does not tolerate other females in her range. Pandas communicate through vocal sounds and scent marking such as clawing trees or spraying urine. They are able to climb and take shelter in hollow trees or rock crevices, but do not establish permanent dens.
Pandas do not hibernate, but will move to elevations with warmer temperatures. Pandas rely primarily on space memory, rather than visual memory.
Social encounters occur during the brief breeding season, in which pandas in proximity to one another will gather. After mating, the male will leave the female to raise the cub alone.
Though the panda is assumed to be docile, it has been known to attack humans, because of irritation rather than aggression.
The giant panda's diet usually consists of bamboo. The giant panda is a "highly specialized" animal with "unique adaptations," and has lived in bamboo forests for many years. The average giant panda eats as much as 20 to 30 pounds of bamboo shoots a day to compensate for its low level of energy digestibility. The digestive tract is very short, and straight, so waste materials quickly leave the body. The giant panda defecates up to 40 times a day. The limited energy input imposed on it by its diet effects the panda's behavior. The giant panda tends to limit social interactions and avoids steep, sloping terrain to limit its energy expenditures.
Two of the panda's most distinct features, are its large size and round face, which are adapted to its bamboo diet. The low body surface area to body volume, indicates it has a low metabolic rate. This low metabolic rate and a more sedentary lifestyle will allow the giant panda to subsist on nutrient poor resources such as bamboo. The giant panda's round face is the result of powerful jaw muscles, attached from the top of the head to the jaw. Large molars crush and grind fibrous plant material.
Pandas eat any of 25 bamboo species in the wild. Only a few bamboo species are widespread at the high altitudes pandas inhabit. Bamboo leaves contain highest levels of protein. Stems have less.
The giant panda must have at least two different species of bamboo available in its range to avoid starvation. While primarily herbivorous, the giant panda will eat meat, fish, and eggs when available. In captivity, zoos maintain the giant panda's bamboo diet, though some will provide specially formulated biscuits or other dietary supplements, if needed so they can get the nutrients that they need and to balance their diet for reproduction.
"Loans of giant pandas to American and Japanese zoos formed an important part of the diplomacy of the People's Republic of China in the 1970s, and became some of the first cultural exchanges between the People's Republic of China and the West. This practice has been termed "Panda diplomacy."
Pandas are no longer given as gifts. Instead, the PRC offers pandas to other nations on a 10-year loan basis, under terms including a fee of up to US$1,000,000 per year, with a provision that any cubs born during the loan are the property of the PRC.
The giant panda is an endangered species, because of habitat loss and by very low birthrates, both in the wild and in captivity.
The giant panda has been the target of poaching since ancient times by both locals and by foreigners since it was introduced to the West. But pandas remained a source of soft furs for the locals.
In 2006, scientists reported that the number of pandas living in the wild may have been underestimated at about 1,000. The giant panda is among the world's most adored and protected rare animals. Not all conservationists agree that the money spent on conserving pandas is well spent.
A giant panda cub. At birth, the giant panda typically weighs 3.5 to 7 ounces and measures six to 7 inches long.
The primary method of breeding giant pandas while in captivity is by artificial insemination, as they seemed to lose their interest in mating once they were captured. Only recently have researchers started having success with captive breeding programs. They have now determined giant pandas have comparable breeding to some populations of the American black bear, a thriving bear family. The current reproductive rate is considered one young every two years. The giant panda produces the proportionally smallest baby of any mammal.
Giant pandas reach sexual maturity between the ages of four and eight, and may be reproductive until age 20. The mating season is between March and May, and lasts for two or three days and only occurs once a year. The gestation period ranges from 95 to 160 days.
If twins are born, usually only one survives in the wild. The mother will select the stronger of the cubs, and the weaker will die. The mother is thought to be unable to produce enough milk for two cubs, since she does not store fat. The father has no part in helping with the raising of the cub.
When the cub is first born, it is pink, blind, and toothless, weighing only 90 to 3.2 to 4.6 ounces, or about 1/800th of the mother's weight. The cub will nurse from its mother's breast six to 14 times a day for up to 30 minutes at a time. For three to four hours, the mother may leave the den to feed, which leaves the cub defenseless. About two weeks after birth, the cub's skin turns gray, this will be where its hair will eventually become black. A slight pink color may appear on cubs' fur, as a result of a chemical reaction between the fur and its mother's saliva. A month after birth, the color pattern of the cub's fur is fully developed. Its fur is very soft and but coarsens with age. The cub begins to crawl at 75 to 80 days. The mother will play with their cub by rolling and wrestling with the baby. The cubs can eat small quantities of bamboo after six months. However, the mother's milk will be the main food source for most of the first year. Giant panda cubs weigh about 100 pounds at one year, and live with their mothers until they are 18 months to two years old. The interval between births in the wild is generally two years.
The panda "black and white cat-foot" also known as panda bear or the giant panda to distinguish it from the unrelated red panda, is a bear native to south-central China. It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body. The panda's diet is more than 99% bamboo. Pandas in the wild will occasionally eat other grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of birds, rodents or carrion. In captivity, they may receive honey, eggs, fish, yams, shrub leaves, oranges, or bananas along with specially prepared food.
The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan province. Because of farming, deforestation, and development, the panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived.
The panda is an endangered species. In a 2007 report show, there are 239 pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27 outside the country. Estimates vary as how many pandas are in the wild. One estimate shows that there are about 1,590 individuals living in the wild. A 2006 study, estimated that this figure could be as many as 2,000 to 3,000. Some reports show that the number of pandas in the wild is on the rise. However, it is not believed there are enough to take them from endangered class.
The dragon has served as China's national emblem, but internationally the panda appears to be as common. As such, it is becoming widely used within China in international contexts. An example is one of the five mascots of the Beijing Olympics was the panda.
The giant panda has a black-and-white coat. Adults measure around four to six feet long, including a tail of 3.9--5.9 inches. It is 2.0 to 3.0 feet tall at the shoulder. Males can weigh up to 350 pounds. Females are 10--20% smaller than males and can weigh as little as 150 pounds, but can also weigh up to 276 pounds. Average adult weight is 220 to 254 pounds.
The giant panda has a body shape typical of bears. It has black fur on its ears, eye patches, muzzle, legs, arms and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Though scientists don't know why these bears are black and white. It is speculated the bold coloring provides good camouflage in the shade-dappled snowy and rocky of their habitat. The giant panda's thick, the furry coat keeps it warm in the cool forests.
The giant panda's paw has a thumb and five fingers; the thumb helps it to hold bamboo while eating.
The tail of the giant panda measures four to six inches, which is the second-longest tail in the bear family. The longest belongs to the sloth bear.
The giant panda lives to about 20 years in the wild and can live up to 30 years in captivity. The oldest captive, a female named Ming Ming, had a recorded age of 34 years.
In the wild, the giant panda is an earthbound animal and spends its life roaming and feeding in the bamboo forests in China. Giant pandas are generally loners, with each adult having a defined territory. The female does not tolerate other females in her range. Pandas communicate through vocal sounds and scent marking such as clawing trees or spraying urine. They are able to climb and take shelter in hollow trees or rock crevices, but do not establish permanent dens.
Pandas do not hibernate, but will move to elevations with warmer temperatures. Pandas rely primarily on space memory, rather than visual memory.
Social encounters occur during the brief breeding season, in which pandas in proximity to one another will gather. After mating, the male will leave the female to raise the cub alone.
Though the panda is assumed to be docile, it has been known to attack humans, because of irritation rather than aggression.
The giant panda's diet usually consists of bamboo. The giant panda is a "highly specialized" animal with "unique adaptations," and has lived in bamboo forests for many years. The average giant panda eats as much as 20 to 30 pounds of bamboo shoots a day to compensate for its low level of energy digestibility. The digestive tract is very short, and straight, so waste materials quickly leave the body. The giant panda defecates up to 40 times a day. The limited energy input imposed on it by its diet effects the panda's behavior. The giant panda tends to limit social interactions and avoids steep, sloping terrain to limit its energy expenditures.
Two of the panda's most distinct features, are its large size and round face, which are adapted to its bamboo diet. The low body surface area to body volume, indicates it has a low metabolic rate. This low metabolic rate and a more sedentary lifestyle will allow the giant panda to subsist on nutrient poor resources such as bamboo. The giant panda's round face is the result of powerful jaw muscles, attached from the top of the head to the jaw. Large molars crush and grind fibrous plant material.
Pandas eat any of 25 bamboo species in the wild. Only a few bamboo species are widespread at the high altitudes pandas inhabit. Bamboo leaves contain highest levels of protein. Stems have less.
The giant panda must have at least two different species of bamboo available in its range to avoid starvation. While primarily herbivorous, the giant panda will eat meat, fish, and eggs when available. In captivity, zoos maintain the giant panda's bamboo diet, though some will provide specially formulated biscuits or other dietary supplements, if needed so they can get the nutrients that they need and to balance their diet for reproduction.
"Loans of giant pandas to American and Japanese zoos formed an important part of the diplomacy of the People's Republic of China in the 1970s, and became some of the first cultural exchanges between the People's Republic of China and the West. This practice has been termed "Panda diplomacy."
Pandas are no longer given as gifts. Instead, the PRC offers pandas to other nations on a 10-year loan basis, under terms including a fee of up to US$1,000,000 per year, with a provision that any cubs born during the loan are the property of the PRC.
The giant panda is an endangered species, because of habitat loss and by very low birthrates, both in the wild and in captivity.
The giant panda has been the target of poaching since ancient times by both locals and by foreigners since it was introduced to the West. But pandas remained a source of soft furs for the locals.
In 2006, scientists reported that the number of pandas living in the wild may have been underestimated at about 1,000. The giant panda is among the world's most adored and protected rare animals. Not all conservationists agree that the money spent on conserving pandas is well spent.
A giant panda cub. At birth, the giant panda typically weighs 3.5 to 7 ounces and measures six to 7 inches long.
The primary method of breeding giant pandas while in captivity is by artificial insemination, as they seemed to lose their interest in mating once they were captured. Only recently have researchers started having success with captive breeding programs. They have now determined giant pandas have comparable breeding to some populations of the American black bear, a thriving bear family. The current reproductive rate is considered one young every two years. The giant panda produces the proportionally smallest baby of any mammal.
Giant pandas reach sexual maturity between the ages of four and eight, and may be reproductive until age 20. The mating season is between March and May, and lasts for two or three days and only occurs once a year. The gestation period ranges from 95 to 160 days.
If twins are born, usually only one survives in the wild. The mother will select the stronger of the cubs, and the weaker will die. The mother is thought to be unable to produce enough milk for two cubs, since she does not store fat. The father has no part in helping with the raising of the cub.
When the cub is first born, it is pink, blind, and toothless, weighing only 90 to 3.2 to 4.6 ounces, or about 1/800th of the mother's weight. The cub will nurse from its mother's breast six to 14 times a day for up to 30 minutes at a time. For three to four hours, the mother may leave the den to feed, which leaves the cub defenseless. About two weeks after birth, the cub's skin turns gray, this will be where its hair will eventually become black. A slight pink color may appear on cubs' fur, as a result of a chemical reaction between the fur and its mother's saliva. A month after birth, the color pattern of the cub's fur is fully developed. Its fur is very soft and but coarsens with age. The cub begins to crawl at 75 to 80 days. The mother will play with their cub by rolling and wrestling with the baby. The cubs can eat small quantities of bamboo after six months. However, the mother's milk will be the main food source for most of the first year. Giant panda cubs weigh about 100 pounds at one year, and live with their mothers until they are 18 months to two years old. The interval between births in the wild is generally two years.
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Another of the essays in my nature series.
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