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Pandas once were heavily populated in Southern and Eastern China neighboring Myanmar and North Vietnam. A mid 1980's census showed that there were 1,000 giant Pandas scattered across Southern China.
Pandas live in Eastern China and they are scattered across six mountain ranges inSoutheastern China. They live where bamboo grows in the mountains. They live in damp and rainy forests. In one year the forest may receive up to fifty inches of rain or snow.
Pandas' food grows in warm regions. They eat bamboo and fruits. The bamboo pandas eat is a certain species of bamboo; this bamboo has large grasses and sometimes it might even reach 100 feet. Usually bamboo stalks are hollow and round with deciduous leaves (leaves that fall off every year). Bamboo can also be used for other things like wood and furniture. Each species of bamboo has a growing cycle that takes about five to ten years to become fully grown. Bamboo is a large part of the pandas' daily diet. An adult panda will spend fourteen hours eating every day. They can eat twenty-five to forty pounds of bamboo a day but pandas have also been known to sometimes eat plants other than bamboo such as grasses, leaves, stems, bark, tree fungus, and wild parsnips.
Pandas are endangered because man is destroying their home. There is not enough money to help care for the Pandas. Poachers keep on killing the giant pandas. The Panda's pelt has been a symbol of power and wealth for many centuries. People use panda pelt as furniture in their homes. Their hides are now worth thousands of dollars on the black market. People in China poach the pandas for money even though the penalty may be death.
The key to the preservation of the Giant Panda is to find a balance between the needs of the bear and the needs of its country, China. Their habitat is reduced every day by man. The population in China is so large that they're tearing down the forest for homes and stores and some buildings that they they don't even need. We can help by stopping habitat destruction and leaving them to their own lives.
Pandas weigh from 165 to 300 pounds. They can live up to 31 years. The length of their head and body is five to six feet, and their tails are five inches long. The Giant Panda resembles a bear although it's more like a raccoon because it's mostly white with black limbs, ears, and eye patches. The adult Panda can weigh from 200 to 300 pounds. Pandas have a different way of walking than other bears because they are pigeon toed. The panda's fur is thick and a little oily to protect it from the weather.
click here to play the panda puzzle
Link to Panda Cam : visit to see live pandas at the San Diego Zoo!
