It is called a Cat Bear because it was thought to be related to a small bear and washes itself like a cat by licking its entire body. This name was given to it by Thomas Hardwicke, when he introduced it to Europeans in 1821. The Red Panda is also known as the Wah because of its distinctive cry. There is an estimated population of less than 2,500 mature individuals and this number continues to decline due to severely fragmented populations. The Red Panda is classified as an endangered species. The effective population size in the Sichuan population is larger and more stable than that in the Yunnan population, implying a southward expansion from Sichuan to Yunnan. The Western Red Panda has lighter pelage, especially in the face, while the Styans Red Panda has more dramatic facial markings. There are two extant subspecies of Red Panda: the Western Red Panda ( Ailurus fulgens fulgens) that lives in the western part of its range, and the somewhat larger Styans Red Panda ( Ailurus fulgens styani) that lives in the east-northeastern part of its range.
Fossils of the Red Panda have been unearthed from China in the east to Britain in the west (Hu, 1990), and most recently a handful of fossils ( Pristinailurus bristoli, Miocene, considered to be a new genus and species of the Red Panda) have also been discovered in North America. Its ancestor can be traced back to tens of millions of years ago with a wide distribution across Eurasia.
However, they are only very distantly related by remote common ancestry from the Early Tertiary Period. This taxonomic classification of both the Red Panda and Giant Panda has been under debate for many decades, as both species share characteristics of both bears and raccoon. The Red Panda is native to the Himalayas in India and Nepal and southern China. Red Pandas are a little bigger than domesticated cats and their cubs are a little bigger than domesticated kittens. Thick fur on the soles of the feet offers protection from cold and hides scent glands. The Red Panda has semi- retractile claws and, like the Giant Panda, has a "false thumb" which is really an extension of the wrist bone. We provide a variety of climbing structures, novel objects to explore and manipulate, and pieces of fruit hidden away inside boxes or tubes.The Red Panda, Ailurus fulgens ("shining cat," from a Latinized form of the Greek αιλουρος, ailouros, "cat," and the participial form of the Latin fulgere, "to shine") is a mostly herbivorous mammal, slightly larger than a domestic cat (55 cm long). Red pandas like to climb and explore their environment. At the Zoo, we offer bamboo shoots and leaves, fruits such as apples, and nutritionally balanced biscuits. Red pandas are omnivores, with bamboo and fruits comprising the bulk of their diet. The presence of water and shelter such as hollow logs are important components of their preferred habitats. Red pandas live in temperate climates in deciduous and coniferous forests, generally with a bamboo understory. They occur in Bhutan, Nepal, northeastern India, Myanmar and southern China. Red pandas range throughout the Himalayan Mountains between 7,200 and 13,800 feet in elevation. On hot days, look for our red panda in the climate-controlled shelter in their habitat. Red pandas are well-adapted for cold weather. We are preparing to welcome two new red panda sisters! Stay tuned for more details on when Members and guests will be able to see the new arrivals! They may stay with their mother until a new litter is born.
The young, which are born blind and fully furred, open their eyes after 18 days, and remain in the mother’s nest for 90 days. Gestation period ranges from 90 to 150 days the average is 134 days. Both males and females may mate with more than one partner in a season. Red pandas breed in the winter – from January through March in the Northern Hemisphere and June through August in the Southern Hemisphere. The young attain their adult size by 12 months and become sexually mature at 18 months. In the wild, red pandas appear to live about 8 to 10 years, while individuals in zoological settings may live into their late teens. While this appendage looks like a sixth digit, it actually is an enlarged wrist bone that functions almost like a thumb, aiding them in holding bamboo while eating. Similar to giant pandas, red pandas have a pseudothumb, or “false thumb,” to help manipulate bamboo. An outer coat of coarse guard hairs overlays and protects a dense, wooly undercoat. Red pandas are approximately 22–25 inches long, with long, furry tails that are around 15 to 19 inches long.
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