Giant panda

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Giant panda

Conservation status

Vulnerable (IUCN 3.1)

[1]

Scientific classification
Kingdom:

Animalia

Phylum:

Chordata

Clade:

Synapsida

Class:

Mammalia

Order:

Carnivora

Suborder:

Caniformia

Family:

Ursidae

Genus:

Ailuropoda

Species:

A. melanoleuca
Binomial name

Ailuropoda melanoleuca
David, 1869

Subspecies

A. m. melanoleuca

A. m. qinlingensis

Giant panda range

The giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca, literally "black and white cat-foot"; simplified
Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ;pinyin: d xing mo; Jyutping: daai6 hung4
maau1, literally "big bear cat"),[2] also known as panda bear or simply panda, is a bear[3]native to
south central China.[1] It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches around its
eyes, over the ears, and across its round body. The name "giant panda" is sometimes used to

distinguish it from the unrelated red panda. Though it belongs to the order Carnivora, the giant
panda's diet is over 99% bamboo.[4] Giant 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 food.[5][6]
The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan province,
but also in neighbouring Shaanxi andGansu.[7] As a result of farming, deforestation, and other
development, the giant panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived.
The giant panda is a conservation reliant vulnerable species.[8][9] A 2007 report shows 239
pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27 outside the country.[10] As of December
2014, 49 giant pandas live in captivity outside China, living in 18 zoos in 13 different countries.
[11]
Wild population estimates vary; one estimate shows that there are about 1,590 individuals
living in the wild,[10]while a 2006 study via DNA analysis estimated that this figure could be as
high as 2,000 to 3,000.[12] Some reports also show that the number of giant pandas in the wild
is on the rise.[13] In March 2015, Mongabay stated the wild giant panda population increased by
268, or 16.8%, totaling to 1,864 individuals.[14] In 2016, the IUCN reclassified the species from
"endangered" to "vulnerable"[9] (it did not believe there was enough certainty yet to do so in
2008[15]).
While the dragon has often served as China's national symbol, internationally the giant panda
appears at least as commonly. As such, it is becoming widely used within China in international
contexts, for example as one of the five Fuwa mascots of the Beijing Olympics.
Contents
[hide]

1Taxonomy
o

1.1Classification

1.2Etymology

1.3Subspecies

2Description
o

2.1Pathology

2.2Genomics

3Behavior
o

3.1Diet

3.2Reproduction

4Uses and human interaction

o

4.1Early references

4.2Western discovery

4.3Panda diplomacy

4.4Biofuel

4.5Conservation

4.6In zoos

4.7Population chart

4.8Reference in medicine

5See also

6References

7External links

Taxonomy
Classification
For many decades, the precise taxonomic classification of the giant panda was under debate
because it shares characteristics with both bears and raccoons.[16] However, molecular
studies suggest the giant panda is a true bear and part of the family Ursidae,[3][17] though it
differentiated early in history from the main ursine stock. The giant panda's closest extant
relative is the spectacled bear of South America.[18] The giant panda has been referred to as
a living fossil.[19]
Despite the shared name, habitat type, and diet, as well as a unique enlarged bone called
the pseudo thumb (which helps them grip the bamboo shoots they eat) the giant panda
and red panda are only distantly related.

Etymology
The word panda was borrowed into English from French, but no conclusive explanation of the
origin of the French word panda has been found.[20] The closest candidate is
theNepali word ponya, possibly referring to the adapted wrist bone of the red panda, which is
native to Nepal. The Western world originally applied this name to the red panda. Until 1901,
when it was erroneously stated to be related to the red panda, the giant panda was known as
"black and white cat-footed animal" (Ailuropus melanoleucus).[21]

Panda cubs

In most encyclopedic sources, the name "panda" or "common panda" originally referred to the
lesser-known red panda,[22] thus necessitating the inclusion of "giant" and "lesser/red" prefixes
in front of the names. Even in 2010, the Encyclopdia Britannica still used "giant panda" or
"panda bear" for the bear,[23] and simply "panda" for the Ailuridae,[24] despite the popular usage
of the word "panda".
Since the earliest collection of Chinese writings, the Chinese language has given the bear 20
different names, such as huxing ("spotted bear") and zhxing ( "bamboo bear").
[25]
The most popular names in China today is dxingmo ( literally "giant bear cat"), or
simply xingmo ( "bear cat"). The name xingmo ( "bear cat") was originally used to
describe the red panda (Ailurus fulgens), but since giant panda was thought to be closely
related to red panda, dxingmo () was named relatively.[25]
In Taiwan, another popular name for panda is the inverted dmoxing ( "giant cat
bear"), though many encyclopediae and dictionaries in Taiwan still use the "bear cat" form as
the correct name. Some linguists argue, in this construction, "bear" instead of "cat" is the base
noun, making this name more grammatically and logically correct, which may have led to the
popular choice despite official writings.[25] This name did not gain its popularity until 1988, when
a private zoo in Tainan painted a sun bear black and white and created the Tainan fake panda
incident.[26][27]

Subspecies

The Qinling panda has a light-brown and white pattern

Two subspecies of giant panda have been recognized on the basis of distinct cranial
measurements, color patterns, and population genetics (Wan et al., 2005).

The nominate subspecies Ailuropoda melanoleuca consists of most extant populations

of panda. These animals are principally found in Sichuan and display the typical stark
black and white contrasting colors.

The Qinling panda, A. m. qinlingensis[28] is restricted to the Qinling Mountains in

Shaanxi at elevations of 13003000 m. The typical black and white pattern of Sichuan
giant pandas is replaced with a dark brown versus light brown pattern. The skull of A. m.
qinlingensis is smaller than its relatives, and it has larger molars.

A detailed study of the giant panda's genetic history from 2012 [29] confirms that the separation of
the Qinlin population occurred about 300,000 years ago, and reveals that the non-Qinlin
population further diverged into two groups, named the Minshan and the Qionglai-DaxianglingXiaoxiangling-Liangshan group respectively, about 2,800 years ago.[30]

Description

Bones of the left forelimb

The giant panda has luxuriant black-and-white fur. Adults measure around 1.2 to 1.9 m (4 to
6 ft) long, including a tail of about 1015 cm (3.95.9 in), and 60 to 90 cm (2.0 to 3.0 ft) tall at
the shoulder.[31][32] Males can weigh up to 160 kg (350 lb).[33] Females (generally 1020% smaller
than males)[34] can weigh as little as 70 kg (150 lb), but can also weigh up to 125 kg (276 lb).[8][31]
[35]
Average adult weight is 100 to 115 kg (220 to 254 lb).[36]
The giant panda has a body shape typical of bears. It has black fur on its ears, eye patches,
muzzle, legs, arms and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Although scientists do
not know why these unusual bears are black and white, speculation suggests that the bold
coloring provides effective camouflage in their shade-dappled snowy and rocky habitat. [37] The
giant panda's thick, wooly coat keeps it warm in the cool forests of its habitat. [37] The panda's
skull shape is typical of durophagous carnivorans. It has evolved from previous ancestors to
exhibit larger molars with increased complexity and expanded temporal fossa. [38][39] A 110.45 kg
(243.5 lb) giant panda has a 3D canine teeth bite force of 2603.47 newtons and bite force
quotient of 292.[citation needed] Another study had a 117.5 kg (259 lb) giant panda bite of 1298.9
newtons (BFQ 151.4) at canine teeth and 1815.9 newtons (BFQ 141.8) at carnassial teeth. [40]
The giant panda's paw has a "thumb" and five fingers; the "thumb" actually a
modified sesamoid bone helps it to hold bamboo while eating.[41] Stephen Jay
Gould discusses this feature in his book of essays on evolution and biology, The Panda's
Thumb.
The giant panda's tail, measuring 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 in), is the second-longest in the bear
family. (The longest belongs to the sloth bear.)[34]
The giant panda typically lives around 20 years in the wild and up to 30 years in captivity.[42] A
female named Jia Jia is the oldest giant panda ever in captivity and the oldest giant panda still
living in captivity at an age of 38, as of July 2016. [43]

Pathology

Toxoplasma gondii (arrow) inmacrophages in the lung of a giant panda[44]

A seven-year-old female named Jin Yi died in 2014 in a zoo in Zhengzhou, China, after
showing symptoms of gastroenteritis andrespiratory disease. It was found that the cause of
death was toxoplasmosis, a disease caused by Toxoplasma gondii and infecting most warmblooded animals, including humans.[44]

Genomics
The giant panda genome was sequenced in 2009 using Illumina dye sequencing.[45] Its genome
contains 20pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex chromosomes.

Behavior
The giant panda is a terrestrial animal and primarily spends its life roaming and feeding in the
bamboo forests of the Qinling Mountainsand in the hilly Sichuan Province.[46] Giant pandas are
generally solitary,[47] and each adult has a defined territory, and a female is not tolerant of other
females in her range. Social encounters occur primarily during the brief breeding season in
which pandas in proximity to one another will gather.[48] After mating, the male leaves the
female alone to raise the cub.[49]
Pandas were thought to fall into the crepuscular category, those who are active twice a day, at
dawn and dusk; however, Jindong Zhang found that pandas may belong to a category all of
their own, with activity peaks in the morning, afternoon and midnight. Due to their sheer size,
pandas do not need to fear predators like other herbivores. They can therefore be active at any
time of the day.[50]
Pandas communicate through vocalization and scent marking such as clawing trees
or spraying urine.[8] They are able to climb and take shelter in hollow trees or rock crevices, but
do not establish permanent dens. For this reason, pandas do not hibernate, which is similar to
other subtropical mammals, and will instead move to elevations with warmer temperatures.
[51]
Pandas rely primarily on spatial memory rather than visual memory.[52]
Though the panda is often assumed to be docile, it has been known to attack humans,
presumably out of irritation rather than aggression. [53][54][55]

Diet

Pandas eating bamboo.

Panda eating, standing, playing

Despite its taxonomic classification as a carnivoran, the giant panda's diet is

primarily herbivorous, consisting almost exclusively of bamboo.[42] However, the giant panda still
has the digestive system of a carnivore, as well as carnivore-specific genes, [56] 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.[57][58]Pandas are born with sterile intestines, and require
bacteria obtained from their mother's feces to digest vegetation. [59] The giant panda is a "highly
specialized" animal with "unique adaptations", and has lived in bamboo forests for millions of
years.[47] The average giant panda eats as much as 9 to 14 kg (20 to 30 lb) of bamboo shoots a
day to compensate for its low level of energy digestibility. Ingestion of such a large quantity of
material is possible because of the rapid passage of large amounts of indigestible plant
material through the short, straight digestive tract.[60][61] It is also noted, however, that such rapid
passage of digesta limits the potential of microbial digestion in the gastrointestinal tract,
[60]
limiting alternative forms of digestion. Given this large diet, the giant panda defecates up to
40 times a day.[62]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
to limit its energy expenditures.[63]
Two of the panda's most distinctive features, its large size and round face, are adaptations to
its bamboo diet. Anthropologist Russell Ciochon observed: "[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 allows the giant panda to subsist
on nutrient poor resources such as bamboo."[63] 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.[63] Large molars
crush and grind fibrous plant material.
The morphological characteristics of extinct relatives of the giant panda suggest that while the
ancient giant panda was omnivorous 7 million years ago (mya), it only became herbivorous
some 2-2.4 mya with the emergence of A. microta.[64][65] Genome sequencing of the giant panda
suggests that the dietary switch could have initiated from the loss of the sole T1R1/T1R3
umami taste receptor, resulting from two frameshift mutations within the T1R1 exons. [66] Umami

taste corresponds to high levels of glutamate as found in meat, and may have thus altered the
food choice of the giant panda.[67] Although the pseudegenization of the umami taste receptor
in Ailuropoda coincides with the dietary switch to herbivory, it is likely a result of, and not the
reason for, the dietary change.[65][66][67] The mutation time for the T1R1 gene in the giant panda is
estimated to 4.2 mya[65] while fossil evidence indicates bamboo consumption in the giant panda
species at least 7 mya,[64] signifying that although complete herbivory occurred around 2 mya,
the dietary switch was initiated prior to T1R1 loss-of-function.
Pandas eat any of 25 bamboo species in the wild, such as Fargesia
dracocephala[68] and Fargesia rufa.[69] Only a few bamboo species are widespread at the high
altitudes pandas now inhabit. Bamboo leaves contain the highest protein levels; stems have
less.[70]
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.[71]
Pandas will travel between different habitats if they need to, so they can get the nutrients that
they need and to balance their diet for reproduction. For six years, scientists studied six
pandas tagged with GPS collars at the Foping Reserve in the Qinling Mountains. They took
note of their foraging and mating habits, and analysed samples of their food and feces. The
pandas would move from the valleys in to the Qinling Mountains and would only return to the
valleys in autumn. During the summer months bamboo shoots rich in protein are only available
at higher altitudes which causes low calcium rates in the pandas and during breeding season
the pandas would trek back down to eat bamboo leaves rich in calcium. [72]

Reproduction

A giant panda cub. At birth, the giant panda typically weighs 100 to 200 grams (3 12 to 7 oz) and
measures 15 to 17 centimeters (6 to 7 in) long.[73]

Initially, the primary method of breeding giant pandas in captivity was by artificial insemination,
as they seemed to lose their interest inmating once they were captured.[74] This led some
scientists to try extreme methods, such as showing them videos of giant pandas mating[75] and
giving the males sildenafil (commonly known as "Viagra").[76] Only recently have researchers
started having success with captive breeding programs, and they have now determined giant
pandas have comparable breeding to some populations of the American black bear, a thriving
bear family. The current reproductive rate is considered one young every two years. [13][46]

Panda Research and Breeding Center in Chengdu.

Giant pandas reach sexual maturity between the ages of four and eight, and may be
reproductive until age 20.[77] The mating season is between March and May, when a female
goes into estrus, which lasts for two or three days and only occurs once a year.[78] When
mating, the female is in a crouching, head-down position as the male mounts her from
behind. Copulation time is short, ranging from 30 seconds to five minutes, but the male may
mount her repeatedly to ensure successful fertilization. The gestation period ranges from 95 to
160 days.[78]
Giant pandas give birth to twins in about half of pregnancies.[79] If twins are born, usually only
one survives in the wild. The mother will select the stronger of the cubs, and the weaker will
die. The mother is thought to be unable to produce enough milk for two cubs, since she does
not store fat.[80] The father has no part in helping raise the cub.
When the cub is first born, it is pink, blind, and toothless, [81] weighing only 90 to 130 grams (3.2
to 4.6 ounces), or about 1/800th of the mother's weight,[16] proportionally the smallest baby of
any placental mammal.[82] It nurses from its mother's breast six to 14 times a day for up to 30
minutes at a time. For three to four hours, the mother may leave the den to feed, which leaves
the cub defenseless. One to two weeks after birth, the cub's skin turns gray where its hair will
eventually become black. A slight pink color may appear on cub's fur, as a result of a chemical
reaction between the fur and its mother's saliva. A month after birth, the color pattern of the
cub's fur is fully developed. Its fur is very soft and coarsens with age. The cub begins to crawl
at 75 to 80 days;[16] mothers play with their cubs by rolling and wrestling with them. The cubs
can eat small quantities of bamboo after six months,[83] though mother's milk remains the
primary food source for most of the first year. Giant panda cubs weigh 45 kg (100 pounds) at
one year, and live with their mothers until they are 18 months to two years old. The interval
between births in the wild is generally two years.
In July 2009, Chinese scientists confirmed the birth of the first cub to be successfully
conceived through artificial insemination using frozen sperm. [84] The cub was born at 07:41 on
23 July that year in Sichuan as the third cub of You You, an 11-year-old.[84][85][86] The technique for
freezing the sperm in liquid nitrogen was first developed in 1980 and the first birth was hailed
as a solution to the problem of lessening giant panda semen availability, which had led to
inbreeding.[86][87] Panda semen, which can be frozen for decades, could be shared between
different zoos to save the species.[84][85] It is expected that zoos in destinations such as San
Diego in the United States and Mexico City will now be able to provide their own semen to
inseminate more giant pandas.[87] In August 2014, a rare birth of panda triplets was announced
in China; it was the fourth of such births ever reported. [88]
Attempts have also been made to reproduce giant pandas by interspecific pregnancy by
implanting cloned panda embryos into the uterus of an animal of another species. This has
resulted in panda foetuses, but no live births.[89]