RED PANDA

The Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens) is a mammal species native to the eastern Himalayas and south-western China. It is listed as “Endangered” on the IUCN Red List because the wild population is estimated at fewer than 10,000 mature individuals and continues to decline due to habitat loss, fragmentation, poaching and inbreeding depression.

The Red Panda has reddish-brown fur, a long, shaggy tail and a waddling gait due to its shorter front legs. It is roughly the size of a domestic cat, though with a longer body, and is somewhat heavier. It is arboreal and feeds mainly on bamboo, but also eats eggs, birds and insects. It is a solitary animal, mainly active from dusk to dawn, and is largely sedentary during the day. It is also called the Lesser Panda, the Red Bear-Cat, and the Red Cat-Bear.

The Red Panda is the only living member of the genus Ailurus and the family Ailuridae. It was previously placed in the raccoon and bear families but the results of phylogenetic analysis provide strong support for its taxonomic classification in its own family, Ailuridae, which is part of the super-family Musteloidea, along with the weasel, raccoon and skunk families. Genetic analysis indicate that there are probably two distinct red panda species, the Chinese Red Panda and the Himalayan Red Panda.

The Red Panda is endemic to the temperate forests of the Himalayas and ranges from the foothills of western Nepal, north and north-east India, Bhutan to China in the east. Locations with the highest density of Red Pandas include an area in the Himalayas that has been proposed as having been a refuge for a variety of endemic species in the Pleistocene. The distribution range of the Red Panda should be considered disjunct rather than continuous.