Red Pandas
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The Red Panda lives in temperate deciduous forests in the freezing, misty Eastern Himalayas to China's southwest. Its scientific name is Ailurus fulgens. It is also known as the Lesser Panda, First Panda, the red-cat bear or the firefox, like the browser.
An interesting fact about the Red Panda is that its species has confused scientists as the Red Panda looks like a panda, fox, rat or even a raccoon! The Red Panda was previously placed in the same family as the bear and raccoon, but after research, it was placed in its own section, Ailurus.
It has reddish brown fur and white ears and snouts. They also have a long, bushy tail that measures up to 50 centimetres. Its reddish brown fur is used to camouflage it. It is also used to keep their feet warm and grip branches. Red Pandas are nocturnal. They also have an extended wrist bone that is sort of like a thumb. It allows them to hold on to bamboo while chewing on it. Red Pandas use their whiskers to navigate at night.
There are around 2500 Red Pandas left on Earth, and its extinction risk rate is Vulnerable, which is one step away from Endangered.
The Red Panda is an omnivore. The word "panda" comes from the Nepali word, "Ponya" and literally means bamboo or plant eating animal. It lives mostly on bamboo, but it also consumes berries, fruits, grass, small mammals, bird eggs and insects. Unlike the Giant Panda, the Red Panda is very picky about what type of bamboo it eats. It only likes eating the tender leaves and shoots, and spits out the roots.
An interesting fact about the Red Panda is that its species has confused scientists as the Red Panda looks like a panda, fox, rat or even a raccoon! The Red Panda was previously placed in the same family as the bear and raccoon, but after research, it was placed in its own section, Ailurus.
It has reddish brown fur and white ears and snouts. They also have a long, bushy tail that measures up to 50 centimetres. Its reddish brown fur is used to camouflage it. It is also used to keep their feet warm and grip branches. Red Pandas are nocturnal. They also have an extended wrist bone that is sort of like a thumb. It allows them to hold on to bamboo while chewing on it. Red Pandas use their whiskers to navigate at night.
There are around 2500 Red Pandas left on Earth, and its extinction risk rate is Vulnerable, which is one step away from Endangered.
The Red Panda is an omnivore. The word "panda" comes from the Nepali word, "Ponya" and literally means bamboo or plant eating animal. It lives mostly on bamboo, but it also consumes berries, fruits, grass, small mammals, bird eggs and insects. Unlike the Giant Panda, the Red Panda is very picky about what type of bamboo it eats. It only likes eating the tender leaves and shoots, and spits out the roots.