A Production

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AProduction
Group 4
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In Association withTA Tomomi
ICS 101
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The Giant Panda
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Introduction

• Scientific name Ailuropoda melanoleuca
• It is believed that the Giant Panda made its
  first appearance during the Pleistocene period.
  Scientists have debated whether the panda belongs
  to the bear family, the raccoon family, or a
  separate family of their own. Nowadays, due to
  many reasons, the panda is in danger of becoming
  extinct.
• The Giant Panda is our topic of interest because
  it is undoubtedly one of the most intriguing
  species that is vulnerable to becoming extinct, a
  tragedy that we hope to avoid!!!

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Physical Characteristics

• Weight 165-353 pounds
• Body Length 4-5 feet
• Scent gland is positioned under the tail.
• Vision is poor.
• They are nocturnal.
• They have a good sense of smell.
• Fur is slightly oily, preventing water
  penetration.
• Their molars are broad and flat, adapting for
  chewing bamboo.

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Diet and Feeding

• Pandas are omnivorous
• Bamboo makes up 95 of their diet
• They sit when they eat.
• They eat 12 hours a day, and consume 12-15 of
  their body weight. (Thats the life!!!)
• Pandas are chronically dehydrated.

Got Milk?
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Social Behavior

• Solitary in their habitats.
• Avoid contact with their own kinds in the wild.
• Seen with a partner only during the mating
  season.
• When threatened, pandas lower their heads and
  stare at their opponents to signify aggression.

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• Reach breeding maturity between 4 to 10 years of
  age.
• Mating takes place between March and May.
• Courtship is done by female squirting urine as a
  calling card for the males.
• While males compete for the female, the female
  perches in a tree.
• Gestation period varies from about 97 to 165
  days.
• Average life span in the wild is about 15 years
  in captivity, about 20 years.

Reproduction
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The Cub

• Usually in the month August or September, one or
  two cubs are born.
• Cubs weigh approx. 3 to 5 oz.
• They are born blind and hairless.
• When there are two cubs, one usually dies due to
  the mothers rejection.
• After 15 to 18 months, the cub becomes
  independent.

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Location

• The giant panda only exists in six small areas
  located in inland China, including the bamboo
  forests of Sichuan, Gansu, and Shaanxi provinces.

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Home Range

• The size of the home range of a giant panda is
  quite small compared to other bears species.
• In general, a home range will vary from 1.5 to
  2.5 square miles.
• The range of an individual giant panda is shared
  with other bears.

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Nobin says
KILL
SAVE THE PANDAS

• Clearance of its habitat for agriculture and
  logging, as well as poaching and the mass
  flowering if its staple food, bamboo, have
  brought panda numbers down to an estimated 1,000
  animals in the wild.

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Conservation Effort

• Panda conservation began in China during the
  1940s, but was initially restricted to field
  research.
• In 1963, the Chinese Government created Wolong
  as a forest reserve, now better known as a panda
  reserve because of the number of pandas living
  there.
• By 1992, there were 13 panda reserves, covering a
  total area of 6,049km.

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Conservation Efforts

• Chinese Ministry of Forestry and the WWF have the
  following plan outlined for conservation
• The creation of 14 new reserves
• The maintenance of forest habitat links between
  isolated panda populations
• The strengthening of rural development activities
  to reduce the dependency of local people on
  collecting forest products and wild game in panda
  habitat
• The reduction in intensity of logging activities
  in panda habitat outside reserves
• The strengthening of conservation education and
  public awareness activities