What Adaptations do Red Pandas Have?
Physical AdaptationsSome of the physical adaptions the Red Panda has include:
-Large wrist bones that act as thumbs for climbing and grabbing food. -Large tails help for balance and also act as a heat insulator and a pillow -Small body, good for climbing trees, makes them agile -Sharp claws for climbing -38 teeth including canines, the red panda is technically a carnivore, but has a herbivorous diet including bamboo. -Feet are covered with a wooly fur to keep warm and also to help climbing wet trees. -Rotating ankles, to help downward climbing. |
Behavioral AdaptationsSome Behavioral Adaptions of the Red Panda include:
-Nocturnal, eat at night -Solitary animals except during mating season, spend most of their time in the trees -Territorial: as soon as they wake up, they rub themselves on trees and observe their territory -When it feels in danger, it usually escapes into the trees, but if it can't it raises on it's hind legs to appear bigger -Communicates with whistles, twitters, and hisses. It also uses gestures like arching its tail |
Mating Habits
The female red pandas give birth in the spring and summer and usually have one to four offspring. Young red pandas remain in their nests for about 90 days. During this time, their mother cares for them until they are ready to be on their own. The males however, take little to no interest in their offspring. After birth, adulthood is reached in 16 to 18 months. After that time period, both male and female red pandas are ready to mate and repeat the reproduction process.
Eating Habits
Red pandas eat berries, blossoms, bird eggs, bamboo leaves, and the small leaves of other plants. Their primary predators is the snow leopard.Red pandas are excellent climbers, and forage largely in trees. In captivity, they were observed to eat birds, flowers, maple and mullberry leaves, and bark and fruits of maple, beech and mulberry
|