2. Background
Height: 1.5 meters.
Weight: Males are 150kg and women are 125kg.
Life: The Giant Panda usually lives about 20 years
in the wild and about 30 years in captivity.
Description: Pandas have a black and white fur
coat. They are shaped like most bears. They are
known for their large molar teeth which crush
through tough bamboo.
3. Behavior
Pandas are terrestrial animals who spend
their time roaming and feeding on
bamboo in the Qinling Mountains.
Pandas communicate through
vocalization and marking. Marking
includes clawing trees and spraying urine.
Each panda has it’s own defined
territory.
Pandas do not establish dens like most
bears because they do not hibernate.
They are only social during mating
season.
4. Diet
Pandas have a diet that is primarily herbivorous.
Their diet is almost entirely bamboo.
Pandas eat about thirty pounds of bamboo a day.
Pandas spend 11-14 hours each day eating.
“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.” - Panda Researcher Russell Ciochon.
6. Habitat Loss
Deforestation destroys the habitat of the panda.
The destruction of bamboo is killing off the panda’s
food source. 99% of the panda’s diet is bamboo.
With the destruction of bamboo forest the panda
is not only losing its food source, but also it’s habitat
and living quarters.
Although bamboo does regrow quickly, it can take
ten years before new bamboo can support a panda
population.
In 1998 China began to establish reserves for the
pandas. 50% of pandas live in these reserves.
7. Poaching
In certain areas of China logging bans
were established. Unfortunately, the
economy in these areas became
unstable. The humans in these areas
resorted to poaching the pandas as a
mean of boosting their personal income
and the economy in these areas. Because
of this time period, the panda population
was severely at risk.
8. Importance of Pandas
• They are one of most adored
animals by humans
• Their rarity makes them unique.
• To the Chinese the Pandas are seen
as unique.
• To the human population as a whole
pandas a very cute and therefore
humans feel responsible for their
safety.
10. Economic Value
• The pandas is one of the most
expensive animal conservation effort
on the planet.
• The Chinese are concerned that the
continue conservation of pandas will
hurt their economy.
• Chris Packham, an English naturalist,
has made note that, “"The panda is
possibly one of the grossest wastes of
conservation money in the last half
century."
11. Moral Issue
The conservation of the pandaa is a very
interesting issue. The removal of a panda
from its food web would not have a great
impact on the environment. This brings
up an interesting point. Not every
environmental issue has to be solved
because of economic, aesthetic, or
political reasons, but they can be solved
solely on the fact that it is the right thing
to do.
