The giant panda
The Giant panda is one of the most secret and rare wild animal. Yet he is the favorit and well-know mammal in the world.
Giant pandas look like bars but their nearest parents are the racoons.
They live alone in the south-east of china, in the deep bamboo forests between altitude of 1200 and 3500m. They have the most restricted distribution of all bears They live in cold and damps regions but his tick and waterproof coat protect them. They are noctural. They have a rest during the day in their den and are activ at the twilight and the night. They mark their territories with their scent to protect their food against their rivals. Food is important. In actuel fact giant pandas eat during 16 hours a day. They eat almost exclusively bamboo (99% of their food). They devour the branchs, the stems, and the leafs. An adult must consume 32 pounds (= 15kg) every day. If necessary they climb trees very easy: big but nimble!
Basic facts:
Type: loner mammal.
Diet: herbivore (bambous, fruits, flowers, mushrrooms, grasses, barks and sometimes eggs)
Life span: 34 years in captivity or 10 to 15 years wildWeight: 220 to 272 lbs (100 to 125kg)
Size: head and body, 5 to 7 ft (1.5 to 1.9m)
The youngs are minuscule (15 cm and 100gr) blind- naked and helpless
Fun facts:
- symbol of the WWF (World Wildlife Fund)
- giant pand have got the bigest molar of all the carnivores.
- 16 hours during he eat, the rest for sleeping- he can't see very well, but it's not a problem to eat!
- In accordance with the chinese legend, a shepherdess, wo wanted to save a panda, was killed by a léopard. During the funeral the pandas were crying and their black closes lost their colour and run into their white coat.
Why is the giant panda endangered ?
- his habitat disappears to give way to agriculture
- every 50 years the bamboos flowers, have seed and die.
- In 1975 because of this 138 pandas are hungry to death.- The naturel reserves are far-off. The pandas don't meet each other and can't reproduce. Moreover they mate only every 2 years. Today 1000 pandas stay alive and live wild.
Panda has always an important place because he is pretty, sweet and harmless.He is the star of the solft toys for the children. A new star is born with the cartoon movie " kun fu panda "
SAVE THEM !!
