AUSTIN, Texas – Pandas are bears, and
bearsclimb trees , so it’s logical to assume that all pandas probably know how to climb trees, right? Wrong. New research shows that some pandas just aren’t capable clamberers (and the video evidence is adorable).
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Pandas are weird for several reasons, he said, but one reason is that their body shape does not resemble that of any of the other seven bear species that exist. Instead, the panda body shape is more like that of a corgi, or even ahippo- they all have a very large body and large head with relatively short, stout legs. Animals with that body shape aren’t known to climb trees, yet pandas can climb trees. (Well, some of them, at least.) But until now, scientists had never systematically judged how, or how well, these lovable bears could climb.
“It’s very odd that [pandas] are such good climbers because of their body shape,” Schulz said.
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The
giant pandais China’s national treasure, and the species is considered vulnerable to extinction under the
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
. One of the main threats to the panda’s survival is the population of feral dogs that roam the forests where pandas live. Packs ofdogs
will hunt pandas; and if even if the dogs don’t succeed in killing a panda, they can transfer diseases to the bears. These large bears aren’t particularly agile or swift creatures, so their primary escape route is up. If they can’t make it up a tree, they will get injured or killed, so climbing is an important skill for a panda.
The panda cubs at the Chengdu Panda Base that are most skilled at activities like climbing, eating and walking are more likely to survive in the wild and therefore are good candidates for release. It’s still unclear if these baby pandas are capable of learning to climb as they age. So, Schulz and his colleagues plan to revisit these same panda cubs next year to see if any of the adorable
black-and-white floofs that were having trouble climbing have managed to figure it out.In Photos: The Life of a Giant Panda **************************************************
Photos: The Amazing Animals of China
(**************** Originally published on****************************** (Live Science) ********************.
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