The Red Pandas

_Elsa_

“Let’s make a left turn here,” Harry says. “Here are the Red Pandas [Ailurus fulgens]”. 

‘Red pandas are 22 to 24.6 inches long, with a tail of 14.6 to 18.6 inches. They weigh between 8.8 and 13.3 pounds. Their lifespan is typically 12 to13 years but can live as long as 23 years. Their color is reddish-brown, black and white. Red pandas can be found in Nepal, India, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Southern China. Temperate forests with an understory of bamboo forest are the perfect home for a red panda. 

The Red Panda is considered a relative of both the giant panda and the racoon. Although classified as a carnivore, red pandas eat mainly bamboo leaves, grass and fruit. Occasionally they will eat an egg, insect or small animal. They love to eat bamboo but because of their inability to digest it completely, they have to eat large amounts of bamboo to survive. They also eat berries, acorns, and roots. 

Red Pandas are normally solitary creatures but come together in pairs in the breeding season. The females use sticks and leaves to build nests in hollow trees. After a gestation of about 134 days, females can deliver between one to four cubs but usually litters are two cubs. 

Cubs are born blind and weigh 4 to 5 ounces. Mothers are the sole care providers until the cubs are old enough to care for themselves at about 6 to 8 months of age. Red panda cubs are born with grey fur and only weigh up to five ounces. 

Red pandas are extremely endangered with less than 2,500 left in the wild due to habitat loss and poaching for their beautiful coats.’ (Source) 

Rachel is very surprised to learn that the Red Pandas can be a relative of raccoons. She has to tell Rancid about that.

Let’s continue - The Cheetahs

Start at the beginning – The girls go to the zoo