Red Panda

The red panda, Ailurus fulgens, a small mammal closely related to weasels and raccoons, is found in the Himalayan and Tibetan mountain ranges of Nepal, Bhutan, and southern China.  There are two subspecies, the Himalayan red panda and the Chinese red panda, differentiated by slight skull and color variations.  They were isolated almost 200,000 years ago by glaciation in the Brahmaputra River Valley. 

Red pandas live in steeply sloped, heavily forested areas where bamboo grows in dense thickets and there is easy access to water.  Their habitat ranges in altitude from 6,500 feet to over 14,000 feet, in a temperate area with average temperatures in the upper sixties (Fahrenheit).  These mountain ranges contain many protected pockets of forest, interconnected with wildlife corridors through unprotected country.  Some areas overlap habitat where the Giant Panda lives, and the two species must share the bamboo in these locations.

The red panda has a round head with a short snout and white fringed, triangular ears.  Adults are 24″ long and weigh about 15 pounds.  Their fur is dense, reddish-brown and covered with dark guard hairs.  A black belly and legs, with a white muzzle and alternating red and buff rings along an 18″ tail, ensures that the red panda is well camouflaged in a forested area covered in red moss and white lichen.  They have five curved claws on each foot that can be partially retracted in addition to flexible joints in their pelvis and hind limbs and an elongated wrist bone ending in a false thumb.  All of these adaptations allow for a great range of motion when climbing and moving about the forest.

The red panda lives in solitude, except during mating season in late winter when they cautiously seek out mates, resting and feeding near one another for short periods.  Mating occurs on the ground, and gestation lasts 13 weeks, but can be prolonged up to 24 weeks at the discretion of the mother.  The female selects a den site, building a nest of sticks, leaves, grass, and moss.  Litters are between 1 and 4 babies weighing only 3 to 4 ounces at birth.  Babies are born covered in fur for warmth, but blind for their first 18 days.  They depend on their mother for everything for three to five months, and will not leave home until a year has passed.

Red pandas move easily through the trees as well as over open ground.  Trees next to bamboo stands provide places to sit higher up and eat, but the forest also provides shelter, an escape route from potential predators, and branches to sunbathe on in colder weather.  If temperatures become too bitter, red pandas can lower their metabolic rates, curl into a tight ball, and sleep for a few hours to conserve warmth and energy.  Bamboo makes up a large part of their diet, but it is supplemented with fruits, flowers, eggs, small mammals and birds.  They prefer to eat early in the morning and late in the afternoon, while intermittently sleeping during the remaining hours.

Red pandas are on the endangered species list with decreasing populations near 10,000 in the wild.  Their primary predators include leopards and jackals, which they can escape from using their climbing skills and agility through rocky and forested areas.  But their main threat comes from poachers who prize their fur and bushy tails for the hat making industry and habitat destruction and land development that is steadily cutting large forests into small, isolated acreages.  Red pandas have been well studied and are a favorite species at many zoos.  Consider getting out this year to see them and learn more at a zoo near you.