The giant panda, a black-and-white bear, has a body typical of bears. It has black fur on ears, eye patches, muzzle, legs, and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Although scientists do not know why these unusual bears are black and white, some speculate that the bold coloring provides effective camouflage into their shade-dappled snowy and rocky surroundings. The panda's thick, wooly coat keeps it warm in the cool forests of its habitat. Giant pandas have large molar teeth and strong jaw muscles for crushing tough bamboo. Many people find these chunky, lumbering animals to be cute, but giant pandas can be as dangerous as any other bear. They can grow up to 5 feet tall!
Giant Panda's Habitat:
Giant pandas live in broadleaf and coniferous forests with a dense understory of bamboo, at elevations between 5,000 and 10,000 feet. Torrential rains or dense mist throughout the year characterizes these forests, often shrouded in heavy clouds.
Giant Panda's Diet:
A wild giant panda’s diet is almost exclusively (99 percent) bamboo. The balance consists of other grasses and occasional small rodents or musk deer fawns. In zoos, giant pandas eat bamboo, sugar cane, rice gruel, a special high-fiber biscuit, carrots, apples, and sweet potatoes.
Giant Panda's Young:
Female Giant Pandas start mating in May and usually give birth to 3 cubs. Just 1/900th of their mother's weight, a newborn panda is born pink, covered in sparse, short white hairs. It weighs three to five ounces, and is about seven inches long, including a proportionately long tail. Its eyes are shut tightly. It cries loudly and often. The mother takes care of the cubs until they are 1 and a half to 2 years old. The mother leaves her young, and finds another mate to repeat the cycle.
- Days Old
The cub's limbs are weak—it will be several weeks before it can crawl. It continues to vocalize, to communicate its needs and strengthen the relationship with its mother. The cub spends its days sleeping and suckling often. At about a week old, black patches appear on the skin around the eyes, ears, shoulders, and legs. Black hair will grow in these areas in a couple of weeks. The mother frequently licks the cub to stimulate urination and defecation and to clean the cub.- 1-2 Months Old
After about a month, the cub resembles a miniature adult with a longer tail. It vocalizes less and less until it ceases crying and squealing by the time it is two months old. Its eyes open partway after 30 to 45 days and open fully a week or two later. The mother may not leave to eat bamboo until her baby is three or four weeks old. By this time, the baby can better regulate its body temperature and does not require constant contact with its mother to stay warm. Mother has been staying busy providing the cub with high-fat milk. It may grow to ten times its birth weight in five to six weeks. At two months, it suckles three to four times a day.- 3-4 Months Old
The cub can stand and walk a few steps after about 75 to 80 days. At about this time, teeth begin to erupt. The order in which they appear varies from one panda to another. Its eyesight improves, and its hearing becomes more acute. It suckles two to three times a day. At four months old, the cub is active, running several steps at a time and climbing up on its mother's back to play.- 5 Months to a Year Old
At five months, the cub trots behind its mother, mimics her while she eats bamboo, and climbs trees. It may sit in a tree by itself for hours. At six months, it has 26 to 28 teeth and begins to eat solids. It will have deciduous teeth at one year of age, and its permanent teeth will start to erupt at this age. It suckles only once or twice a day. It may continue to suckle at eight or nine months old. By age one, it may weigh 50 to 60 pounds. - 1 and a Half Years Old
In the wild, the cub leaves its mother at one and a half to two years of age.
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