Panda bears: you don’t have to be extinct

The panda bear, also known as the giant panda bear, is native to west-central and southwestern China. Pandas have distinctive physical characteristics that include large patches of black fur around the eyes, above the ears, and all over their round body, which is covered in white fur. Their bodies are round due to their diet. Although classified as a carnivore, the panda has a diet that consists mainly of bamboo; Pandas occasionally eat other foods such as honey, eggs, fish, yams, bush leaves, oranges, and bananas.

The average panda eats between 20 and 30 pounds of bamboo shoots a day. Because pandas eat a low-nutrient diet, it is important that they keep their digestive tract full. The limited energy intake imposed by its diet has affected the panda’s behavior. The giant panda tends to limit its social interactions and avoids steep terrain to limit its energy expenditures. To learn more about panda diet and behavior, read environmental magazines such as Smithsonian, Audubon, and Preservation magazine.

In the wild, the life expectancy of pandas is 14 to 20 years; in human-managed habitats, the expectation is about 30 years.

Panda bears are included in the list of endangered species. The latest estimate of pandas living in the wild is 1,600, according to National Geographic magazine. The biggest threats to panda species are habitat loss and low birth rates. Poaching by locals and foreigners is also a threat to the survival of pandas.

Efforts to maintain the panda population are international. In China there is a panda sanctuary called Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries in Sichuan Province, protected by law from the Chinese government and other wildlife reserves. In the US, researchers at zoos like the one in San Diego are studying the behavior and needs of pandas in hopes of learning how to better care for the animals. Some of the behaviors and needs that are being studied are panda scent marks, nutritional needs, and how they communicate with each other. In addition, environmental organizations around the world, such as the World Wide Fund for Nature, are working to save pandas.