Did you know that pandas have an inseparable relationship with bamboo? They spend at least 12 hours each day eating bamboo. Bamboo actually has very little nutrition per pound, so to get the needed nutrients, pandas eat as much as 84 pounds (38 kilograms) of it each day.
So you can guess that bamboo is the most important plant in a giant panda's life. Pandas live in cold and rainy bamboo forests high in the mountains of western China.
Giant pandas have also been known to eat grasses, bulbs, fruits, some insects, and even rodents and carrion. At the San Diego Zoo, pandas are offered bamboo, carrots, yams, and special leaf eater biscuits made of grain and packed with all the vitamins and minerals pandas need.
The average panda home range is thought to be approximately 1.9 square miles (5 square kilometers), with male ranges larger than that of females. In areas where food is not plentiful, the home range can be larger.
 Image by akahodag via Flickr |
| Giant Panda enjoying its meal |
A word of caution. While pandas are awesome and cute, it is NEVER safe to be too close to one unless you are a trained professional. They know best when and how to approach and interact with this animal. After all, it is of the bear family and very wild. So as with most animals of the world, it is best to watch from far, and admire in "awwwwwww". Awesome indeed.
Visit the World Wildlife Fund to help support all animals including the adorable panda.
Is it a coincidence that both your posts have been about bamboo? Or perhaps it's a deliberate thematic link. In any case, who doesn't love a panda?
ReplyDeleteYes, it was a transition between themes...I like to do that sometimes, then BAM!, hit 'em with something off the wall. Keeps things interesting.
ReplyDeleteOh and who doesn't love a panda. Poachers for one. They only love the money than can come from them. So sad. Fortunately they are a fiercely protected species.
So keep your eyes peeled for the "bam". It may happen when you least expect it!
Muahahahahaha!