Ailurus

The red panda is not a bear, and is not closely related to the giant panda. It is only a distant relative of the giant panda, nor is it a raccoon, nor is it a descendant of an unclassified species; on the contrary, it is a long-standing, independent family from its closest relatives (skunks, raccoons, otters, weasels, badgers), belonging to the basic lineage of the superfamily Musteloidea. There are two subspecies (Red Panda Nominate Subspecies and Red Panda West Sichuan Subspecies).

Red pandas have different local names in different regions. The Rongpa people call it "sak nam"; in Nepal, the animal is called "bhalu biralo" ("panda") and "habre"; the Sherpas of Nepal and Sikkim call it "ye niglva ponva" and "wah donka"; the Sunuwar word "wậː" means bear; the Tamang language calls a small, red bear "tāwām"; the Limbu people of the Kangchenjunga Conservation Area in eastern Nepal call the red panda "kaala" ("darkness") because of the black fur on its underside; Tibetan villagers call them "hoptongar". In addition, Reginald Innis Pocock lists the following common names: ye and nigálya ponya (Nepali); thokya and thongwa (Limbu); oakdonga, wakdonka, or woker (Bhutanese); saknam sunam (Lepcha). Nigálya may be derived from the Nepali word निङ━लो, niṅālo, nĩgālo, meaning a particular kind of bamboo, the North American bamboo family, but also a description of a leopard or a panda. The word pónya may also be derived from the Nepali word पञ्ज━, pajā, meaning claw, or r पौँज━, paũjā, meaning claw of an animal. Nigálya pónya may be translated as bamboo claw or claw. Nigálya pónya, nyala ponga, poonya is said to be a creature that eats bamboo. The name panda may be derived from panjā.

The red panda is also known as the red panda. Many other languages use red panda or gorgeous, small as the name for this species. For example, Bulgarian червена панда, French panda roux, and Spanish panda rojo all mean red panda. As early as at least 1855, one of its French names was panda éclatant (gorgeous panda). In Finland, it is called kultapanda (golden panda). It has been called variously: petit panda (red panda) in French, panda menor (red panda) in Spanish, kleine panda (red panda) in Dutch, малая панда (malaya panda, "red panda") in Russian, 애기판다 ("small panda") in Korean, and レッサーパンダ in Japanese. Other related names include "fire cata", "bright pandaa", and "common pandaa".

Red pandas were recognized as the national animal of Sikkim in the 1990s. A male red panda named "Babu" escaped from the Birmingham Nature Center in the UK and became a media sensation before he was recaptured. He was subsequently selected as the "Brummie of the year", the most influential event of the year in Birmingham, the first animal to receive this honor. In 2013, a female red panda named "Rusty" from the National Zoo in Washington, DC, also had a similar escape experience and became an Internet sensation.

Red pandas are important socially, scientifically and economically. They are the mascot of the Darjeeling International Tea Festival. Red panda skins are used to make hats and their tails are used as dusters. In addition, grooms may still wear red panda skins in local Chinese weddings. Red pandas have played a key role in the taxonomic research of the bear family and the red panda family. Red pandas are illegally hunted and sold to zoos or killed for their skins. Few zoos buy these illegal specimens, making this a rather inefficient business, but the fur can be found in local villages and used in cultural ceremonies.

Red pandas usually live in large tree holes or stone caves and rock crevices. They come out in the morning and evening to forage for food, and sleep in caves or deep in the shade of large trees during the day. When sleeping, they like to curl their heads up among their limbs, hold their heads with their front limbs, and cover their bodies with their tails. Sometimes they lie high on branches with their legs hanging down. They are good at climbing, and often climb high and thin branches to rest or hide from enemies. Because of the thick fur on the soles of their feet, they are also suitable for walking on slippery mossy ground or rocks in the forest. When walking, the front feet are bent inward, and the gait is staggering, similar to that of a bear. Usually they move slowly, have a relatively docile temperament, and rarely make sounds. Their hearing and vision are relatively dull, and their sense of smell is not particularly sensitive. They usually move alone, in pairs, or in small groups. They do not hibernate, and when it rains or snows, they often hide in rock crevices or in the shade of large trees to avoid rain and snow.

In the past 50 years, due to the large-scale reduction of habitats and the impact of human hunting activities, the population of red pandas has decreased by 40% (Wei et al. 1999). The population of red pandas in China is about 3,000-7,000 (Wei et al. 1999), and in India it is about 5,000-6,000 (Choudhury 2001).

Listed in Appendices I, II and III of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 2019 at Level I.

Listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2015 ver3.1 - Endangered (EN).

Listed in the February 5, 2021 edition of China's National List of Key Protected Wildlife at Level II.

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Origin: Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar and Nepal.
In China, it is mainly distributed in Tibet (the southern slope of the Himalayas), Yunnan, Sichuan and other provinces.
The red panda is a forest animal that likes warmth and humidity and is relatively cold-resistant. It lives in a temperate climate in deciduous and coniferous forests at 2500-4800 meters. It mainly lives in mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forests or evergreen broad-leaved forests below 3000 meters above sea level, usually under the forest with bamboo and hollow trees. The activity area is relatively large. In summer, red pandas are mostly active in river valleys with streams on the shady slopes, while in winter they are in river valley basins on the sunny slopes. After snowfall, they even go down to the grass slopes and bushes near the village. They especially like to bask in the sun on sunny cliffs or on the tops of big trees, so the local people in Sichuan call them "Shan Men Dun Er".

The whole skull of the red panda is high and round. The snout is short, and the nasal bone is obviously tilted forward. The frontal bone is high and raised, with a slight concave in the center. The orbital distance is wide, with a postorbital process. The postorbital process is not obvious in young individuals, but it is more prominent in older individuals. The zygomatic arch is thick, and the rear end is significantly arched upward, and the jaw joint is strengthened and enlarged. The sagittal ridge is generally not developed, and only old individuals have it. The front part of the ridge is low and ridge-shaped, and the back part is thin and high. The palatine bone is arched, with a relatively flat front end, a dome-shaped middle section, a low and oblique rear section, and a longitudinal groove in the middle. The palatine bone extends backward and exceeds the rear edge of the last molar. At the base of the pterygoid bone, between the oval foramen and the round foramen, there is a chan