Carl R. Green - Endangered Giant Pandas

Published in 2016 by Enslow Publishing, LLC.
101 W. 23rd Street, Suite 240, New York, NY 10011

Copyright 2016 by Enslow Publishing, LLC.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Katirgis, Jane, author.

Endangered giant pandas / Jane Katirgis and Carl R. Green.

pages cm. (Wildlife at risk)

Summary: Discusses giant pandas, why they are endangered, and how they are being helped--Provided by publisher.

Audience: Ages 11+.

Audience: Grades 7 to 8.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-7660-6894-0 (library binding)

ISBN 978-0-7660-6892-6 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-0-7660-6893-3 (6-pack)

1. Giant pandaJuvenile literature. 2. Endangered speciesJuvenile literature. 3. Giant panda ConservationJuvenile literature. I. Green, Carl R., author. II. Title.

QL737.C27K374 2016

599.789dc23

2015010125

Printed in the United States of America

To Our Readers: We have done our best to make sure all Web site addresses in this book were active and appropriate when we went to press. However, the author and the publisher have no control over and assume no liability for the material available on those Web sites or on any Web sites they may link to. Any comments or suggestions can be sent by e-mail to .

Portions of this book originally appeared in the book The Giant Panda.

Photos Credits: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, p. (panda).

Cover Credits: Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images (panda); Creativ Studio Heinemann/ Creative (RF)/Getty Images (borage flowers); Joakim Leroy/E+/Getty images (palm leaf); Maria Toutoudaki/Photodisk/Getty Images (background paper texture).

GIANT PANDAS AT A GLANCE

Scientific Name

Ailuropoda melanoleuca. The Chinese call the giant panda da xiong mao (dah-shong mah-oo)the large cat-bear.

Closest Relatives

The giant panda is most often classified as a member of Ursidaethe bears. As a bear, its closest relative is the South American spectacled bear.
Other scientists argue that the giant panda is a member of Procyonidaethe raccoons. In that family, its closest relative would be the red panda.

Current Habitat

All wild giant pandas live in the dense bamboo forests of the mountains of western China.

Size and Weight*

Adult Male: Length: 4 to 6 ft. (1.2 to 1.8 m)

Height: 27 to 32 in. (69 to 81 cm)

Weight: 230 lbs. (104 kg)

Adult Female: Length: 3.5 to 4.5 ft.(1.1 to 1.4 m)

Height: 24 to 30 in. (61 to 76 cm)

Weight: 198 lbs. (89.8 kg)

Diet

Giant pandas feed on the shoots, leaves, and stems of the bamboo. In one year, an adult panda can consume more than ten thousand pounds of bamboo. On occasion, pandas also eat fish, small rodents, honey, and flowering plants.

Current Populations

Estimates place the wild population of giant pandas at about 1,600. Another 300 live in zoos and breeding centers, most of which are in China.

Special Adaptations

The giant panda uses a thumb-like wrist bone to grasp bamboo stalks. Its thick, dense coat protects it from cold, snow, and rain at altitudes as high as 10,500 feet (3,200 m).

Life Span

In the wild: about 2022 years.

In captivity: up to 30 years.

Vocalizations

Giant pandas have a large vocabulary. They chirp during mating, honk in times of stress, and bark or click their teeth to frighten enemies. A squeal signals submission or pain, and a bleating, goat-like sound indicates a friendly contact.

Main Threats

Habitat destruction, poaching, periodic die-offs of bamboo, and loss of genetic diversity.

Legislative Status

In the United States, pandas are protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Zoos that want to import pandas must follow strict rules from the Fish and Wildlife Service. China created the first of its giant panda reserves in 1963.

Organizations Working to Save the Panda

Center for Reproduction of Endangered Species

China Wildlife Conservation Association

World Wildlife Fund

Zoological Society of San Diego; Zoo Atlanta; National Zoological Park; Memphis Zoo

*Figures represent average measurements.

chapter one

MEET AILUROPODA MELANOLEUCA

Perhaps you think it is just a typical day at the zoo. Children delight in the antics of the sea lions at feeding time. Spectators watch in awe as a tiger paces around its cage. Not far away, children giggle as a kangaroo rat bounces through its home at the mammal house. In another exhibit, a giraffe stretches its endlessly long legs.

As it turns out, this is far from being a normal day. The zoo has just welcomed some new guests. Follow the surging crowd to the enclosure where Ailuropoda melanoleuca lives. There is the zoos new star calmly munching a bamboo stalk. Someone whispers, Shes a real live black-and-white teddy bear! You do not need a sign to tell you that you are face-to-face with Chinas best-loved visitorthe giant panda.

People Love Pandas

Why do people adore the giant panda? Scientists believe the answer lies in the pandas nonthreatening looks. Like toddlers, pandas have large heads and round, flat faces. Also like babies, their bodies give the illusion of being soft and cuddly. Even the pandas eyes look big and gentle thanks to its black eye patches.

Of course, giant pandas are ten times the size of a human baby. Even so, these slow-moving bamboo eaters inspire joy, not fear. Watch a panda at play. You cannot help but smile to see it turn in clumsy somersaults. If a soccer ball is thrown into the pen, the panda will likely play a lively gameuntil its sharp claws rip the ball to shreds.

Chinese philosophy, art, and science are all affected by the concept of yin and yang. This relates to the ideal of opposites living together in perfect harmony. The panda is considered a living example of yin and yang because it is so comfortable in its coat of black-and-white fur.

Fast Fact!

A newborn panda is only as large as a stick of butter.

A zookeeper answers questions about the giant panda. Her listeners look upset when she confirms that the species is in danger of extinction. Unlike animals such as snail darters and crested toads, people deeply care about pandas. That fact led the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to pick the giant panda as its symbol. Today, a black-and-white panda logo carries the WWFs conservation message across the globe.

Giant Panda Legend

There are many stories about how the panda got its patches of black fur. An old Tibetan legend tells us that pandas once were as white as polar bears. In that long-ago time, a panda cub played with a flock of sheep tended by four sisters. One day a leopard sprang at the cub. The sisters grabbed their shepherds crooks and tried to chase the predator away. In the confusion, the cub escaped. The angry leopard turned on the girls and killed them.

All of Chinas giant pandas came to the funeral. As a sign of their grief, they wore black armbands. When they hugged, cried, and wiped their eyes, their tears caused the dye in the armbands to run. Each hug and pat left a black splotch on their white fur. When they saw what had happened, the pandas vowed never to wash off the black markings. Later, the pandas turned the girls graves into a mountain with four tall peaks. The mountain still stands in Sichuan Province near the Wolong Nature Reserve. Villagers call it Siguniangthe Four Sisters Mountain.