![]() The species has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2015. It is threatened by poaching as well as destruction and fragmentation of habitat due to deforestation. Red pandas mate in early spring, with the females giving birth to litters of up to four cubs in summer. It feeds mainly on bamboo shoots and leaves, but also on fruits and blossoms. The red panda inhabits coniferous forests as well as temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, favouring steep slopes with dense bamboo cover close to water sources. The evolutionary lineage of the red panda ( Ailuridae) stretches back around 25 to 18 million years ago, as indicated by extinct fossil relatives found in Eurasia and North America. It is not closely related to the giant panda, which is a bear, though both possess elongated wrist bones or "false thumbs" used for grasping bamboo. The red panda's place on the evolutionary tree has been debated, but modern genetic evidence places it in close affinity with raccoons, weasels, and skunks. The two currently recognised subspecies, the Himalayan and the Chinese red panda, genetically diverged about 250,000 years ago. ![]() The red panda was first formally described in 1825. ![]() It is well adapted to climbing due to its flexible joints and curved semi-retractile claws. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzzle and a ringed tail. The red panda ( Ailurus fulgens), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China.
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