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When you think of pandas, you probably think of big black and white bears.
Think again. Giant pandas are not the only kind of pandas. The red panda, or
lesser panda, does not look like at all like a giant panda. It looks more like a
reddish-brown raccoon, with markings around its eyes and a long, bushy, striped
tail. A giant panda can weigh over 200 pounds, but a red panda is only a little
bigger than a cat.
Even though it looks very different, the red panda has a lot in common with its
giant cousin. The giant panda and the red panda live in bamboo forests of China,
although the red panda has a wider range, and can also be found in Nepal and
northern India. The diet of both pandas is made up mostly of bamboo. They both
have a special wrist bone that acts as a thumb to help them eat bamboo. Bamboo
is not very nourishing, so giant pandas and red pandas spend most of their
waking hours finding and eating bamboo.
Unfortunately, there is another thing red pandas and giant pandas have in
common. They are both endangered species. The bamboo forests where the
pandas live are shrinking because of logging and farming. Scientists are working
to preserve and expand the bamboo forests. If they can save the forests, they
may save both pandas.