These are 10 curiosities about red pandas. :3
1: Although they share some physical and habitat characteristics with bears, experts have determined that they belong to the Ailuridae family, which is a family of carnivorous mammals that only includes this species and other extinct genera.
2: It was discovered by a French zoologist and paleontologist named Frédéric Cuvier in 1825.
3: Much of their diet is bamboo, but they can also eat berries, insects, and small mammals.
4: They can be found in the Himalayan mountains, in Nepal, Bhutan, India and China. They are nocturnal animals with a solitary life.
5: They are in danger of extinction due to the deforestation of their habitat and poaching. There are thought to be fewer than 10,000 left in the wild.
6: They usually have one or two pups per litter, although on rare occasions they can have three. They are born after a gestation period of approximately 135 days.
7: Red pandas have a modified sesamoid bone along the wrist that acts like a thumb. This allows them to grasp and manipulate food, such as leaves and twigs.
8: They sleep up to 17 hours a day. They normally like to rest on the branches of trees.
9: When threatened, they rear up on their hind legs to make themselves look bigger.
10: They are animals that hibernate. When winter comes their metabolism slows down, which allows them to conserve energy and maintain their body temperature.