Animal Friend of the Week: The Red Panda

Good morning from a cool autumn day here in Hastings.

My animal friend of the week is the red panda.  Despite it’s name it is not related the the giant panda.

The red panda (Ailurus fulgens), also called lesser panda, red bear-cat, and red cat-bear, is a mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China.^[1] It has reddish-brown fur, a long, shaggy tail, and a waddling gait due to its shorter front legs, and is slightly larger than a domestic cat. It is arboreal, feeds mainly on bamboo, but also eats eggs, birds, and insects. It is a solitary animal, mainly active from dusk to dawn, and is largelysedentary during the day.

The red panda has been classified as Endangered by the IUCN because its wild population is estimated at less than 10,000 mature individuals and continues to decline due to habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching, andinbreeding depression, although red pandas are protected by national laws in their range countries.^[1][4]

The red panda is the only living species of the genus Ailurus and the family Ailuridae. It has been previously placed in the raccoon and bear families, but the results of phylogenetic research provide strong support for itstaxonomic classification in its own family Ailuridae, which along with the weasel, raccoon and skunk families is part of the superfamily Musteloidea.^[5] Two subspecies are recognized.^[3] It is not closely related to the giant panda.

As usual my source of information is Wikipedia.  For more info about this cute and adorable endangered animal check this page out.

I want to showcase our animal kingdom.  It runs from Tuesday New Zealand time and is weekly.  You can join in anytime at all over the week.  You can post your furry friends (babies), wild animals, birds, insects and butterflies.  Even reptiles are welcome.

Thanks for visiting.  I look forward to seeing what you post too.

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