endangered animals

Giant panda

This article is about the mammal in the bear family. For the red panda,

see

Red panda

. For the hip hop group, see

Giant Panda (group)

. For other

uses, see

Panda (disambiguation)

The

giant panda

, or

panda

(

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

, literally meaning

cat-foot

[2]

is a bear

[3]

native to central- western and south western China.

[4]

It is easily recognized

by its large, distinctive black patches around the eyes, over the ears, and across its round body.

Though it belongs to the order

Carnivora

, the panda's diet is 99%

bamboo

.

[5]

Pandas in the wild

will occasionally eat other grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of birds, rodents or

carrion. In captivity they may receive honey, eggs, fish, yams,

shrub leaves

, oranges, or bananas

along with specially prepared feed.

[6][7]

The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central

China, mainly in

Sichuan

province, but also in the

Shaanxi

and

Gansu

provinces.

[8]

Due to farming,

deforestation

and other development, the panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it

once panda is a

conservation reliant

endangered species

.

[4]

A 2007 report shows 239

pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27 outside the country.

[9]

Wild population

estimates vary; one estimate shows that there are about 1,590 individuals living in the wild,

[9]

while a 2006 study via

DNA analysis

estimated that this figure could be as high as 2,000 to

3,000.

[10]

Some reports also show that the number of pandas in the wild is on the rise.

[11][12]

However, the

IUCN

does not believe there is enough certainty yet to reclassify the species from

Endangered to Vulnerable.

[1]

While the

dragon

has historically served as China's

national emblem

,

in recent decades the panda has also served as an emblem for the country. Its image appears on a

large number of modern Chinese commemorative silver, gold, and platinum coins. Though the

panda is often assumed to be docile, it has been known to attack humans, presumably out of

irritation rather than predation.

Diet

Despite its

taxonomic

classification as a

carnivoran

, the

giant panda's

diet

is primarily

herbivorous

, consisting almost exclusively of bamboo.

[22]

However,

the giant panda still has the digestive system of a carnivore, as well as carnivore- specific genes,

[30]

and thus derives little energy and little protein from consumption of bamboo. Its ability to digest

cellulose

is ascribed to the microbes in its gut.

[31]

The giant panda is a

with

[25]

The average

giant panda eats as much as 9 to 14 kg (20 to 30 pounds) of bamboo shoots a day. Because the

giant panda consumes a diet low in nutrition, it is important for it to keep its digestive tract full.

[22]

The limited energy input imposed on it by its diet has affected the panda's behavior. The giant

panda tends to limit its social interactions and avoids steeply sloping terrain in order to limit its

energy expenditures.

[32]

Two of the panda's most distinctive features, its large size and its round

face, are

adaptations

to its bamboo diet. Panda researcher

Russell Ciochon

observed that: “[much]

like the vegetarian

gorilla

, the low body surface area to body volume [of the giant panda] is

indicative of a lower metabolic rate. This lower metabolic rate and a more sedentary lifestyle

allow the giant panda to subsist on nutrient poor resources such as bamboo.”

[32]

Similarly, the

giant panda's round face is the result of powerful jaw muscles, which attach from the top of the

head to the jaw.

[32]

Large molars crush and grind fibrous plant eat any of

twenty-five bamboo species in the wild, such as

Fargesia dracocephala

[33]

and

Fargesia rufa

.

[34]

Only a few bamboo species are widespread at the high altitudes pandas now inhabit. Bamboo

leaves contain the highest protein levels; stems have less.

[35]

Given this large diet, the giant panda

can defecate up to 40 times a day.

[36]

Because of the synchronous flowering, death, and

regeneration of all bamboo within a species, the giant panda must have at least two different

species available in its range to avoid starvation. While primarily herbivorous, the giant panda still

retains decidedly ursine teeth, and will eat meat, fish, and eggs when available. In captivity, zoos

typically maintain the giant panda's bamboo diet, though some will provide specially-formulated

biscuits or other dietary supplements

Golden snub-nosed monkey

The

golden snub-nosed monkey

(

Rhinopithecus roxellana

) is an

Old World

monkey

in the

Colobinae

subfamily.

[1]

It is

endemic

to a small area in

temperate, mountainous

forests

of

central

and

Southwest China

.

[3]

The

Chinese

name

is

sichuan

golden

hair

monkey

(

川金丝猴

).

It

is

also

widely

referred

to

as

the

sichuan

snub-nosed

monkey.

[4][5][6]

Snow

occurs

frequently

within its range and it can withstand colder average temperatures than

any

other

non-human

primates.

[7]

Its

diet

varies

markedly

with

the

seasons,

but

it

is

primarily

an

herbivore

with

lichens

being

its

main

food

source.

It is diurnal and largely arboreal, spending some 97% of their time in

the canopy. There are three subspecies. Population estimates range from

8,000 to 15,000 and it is threatened by

habitat loss

.

[2]

The adult and

subadult golden snub-nosed monkey is

sexually dimorphic

. Adult males

(estimated at over 7 years of age) have large bodies covered with very

long,

golden

guard

hairs

on

their

backs

and

cape

area.

The

crest

is

medium

brown

while

the

back,

crown

to

nape

,

arms

and

outer

thighs

are

deep

brown.

Subadult

males

(estimated

at

5

–

7

years

of

age)

are

more

slender

than

adult

males.

The

golden

guard

hairs

are

short

and

sparse,

and

their

crests

show

females (estimated at over 5 years of age) are about

half the size of adult males. The golden guard hairs are also present on

the

back

and

cape

area,

but

they

are

shorter

in

length

than

in

the

males.

The brown crest shows

microbanding

. Their breasts and nipples are

lt females are about two-thirds the size of adult females.

The body hair is brown, gradually turning golden but without the golden

guard hairs. The crest shows microbanding. The breasts and nipples are

not as large as in adult les (at least 1 year of age) are

quite small, being less than two-thirds the size of adult females. The

body

hair

is

light

brown,

turning

reddish

gold

with

time.

The

rest

of

their

body hair is brown. Sexual discrimination is difficult because their

external genital organs are underdeveloped. Infants (age 3 months to a

year)

are

light

brownish

gray

or

light

brown,

appearing

white

in

sunlight.

Their

sex

cannot

be

identified

at

this

age.

Newborn

babies

(

under

3

months