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RED PANDAS
PARADISE WILDLIFE PARK | HERTFORDSHIRE | ENGLAND
Red pandas are currently listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, with fewer than 2,500 remaining in the wild.
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Legally protected in India, Bhutan, China, Nepal and Myanmar, the primary threat to the wild populations is habitat loss from deforestation, human interference and poaching for their fur.
Whilst poachers may see their trademark russet fur as an asset to harvest, it also provides the pandas with the perfect camouflage in the surrounding red-brown moss and white lichen of the trees, making them particularly hard to spot.
Fifty percent of the red panda’s habitat is in the eastern Himalayas and 90 percent of the time they are arboreal, searching high branches for food and showing off the agility and acrobatics for which they are well known.
They use their long bushy tails for balance and extra warmth in the colder winter months. Closely related to weasels and skunks...
WORDS: FAITH MILLWARD
IMAGES: COURTESY OF PARADISE WILDLIFE PARK
