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Gestation of Red Panda

Red pandas typically give birth to litters of one to four cubs after a gestation period of about 134 days. Cubs stay in the nest for about 90 days and remain close to their mothers until the next mating season.

Physical Descripition of Red Panda

They have large, round heads and short snouts with big, pointed ears. Their faces are white with reddish-brown “tear” marks that extend from the eyes to the corner of the mouth. These markings could have evolved to help keep the sun out of their eyes. Their tails are marked with alternating red and buff rings. Red pandas have a soft, dense woolly undercoat covered by long, coarse guard hairs. Long, bushy tails help these arboreal animals maintain balance and protect them from harsh cold and winds. Dense fur completely covers their feet which have five, widely separated toes and semi-retractable claws.

Native Habitat/Ecosystem

Red pandas live in high-altitude, temperate forests with bamboo understories in the Himalayas and other high mountains. They range from northern Myanmar (Burma) to the west Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces of China. They are also found in suitable habitat in Nepal, India and Tibet. Ailurus fulgens fulgens lives predominantly in Nepal and can also be found in India and Bhutan. Ailurus fulgens styani (or Ailurus fulgens refulgens) is primarily found in China and Myanmar.

Food/Eating Habits

Bamboo constitutes about 95% of the red panda's diet. Unlike giant pandas that feed on nearly every above-ground portion of bamboo (including the culm, or woody stem), red pandas feed selectively on the most nutritious leaf tips and, when available, tender shoots.

Reason for endangerment of Red Panda

Although habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation pose the greatest risk of extinction to the remaining wild red panda population, these issues are heavily compounded by wider concerns of climate change, overpopulation, lack of legislative enforcement, invasive species, and the illegal wildlife trade