Wild Panda Habits and Behaviors

Giant Pandas are omnivores but bamboo takes up 99% of their dietary. Pandas spend 12-16 hours a day eating 20-30kg of bamboos. Pandas are solitary and territorial animals although sometimes their territories overlap. Spring (late March to mid April) is their very short mating seasons. Pandas are more active during morning and dawn.

Inhabiting and Living Environment

Elevation and Terrain-

Pandas are found in between 1200m and 4100m and within this they usually live by the elevation between 2600m and 3500m where the climate is cool(below 20C), food source(bamboo) is abundant, air is humid and water source is plenty. By this elevation the vegetation is usually mixed conifer and broadleaf forest where views are usually blocked, visibility is very limited. The east side of Qionglaishan, Minshan are often very rainy due to the dramatic rise of elevation that also allows the formation of humid weather that provides rainfall for bamboos to grow.

The terrain of all panda habitats are steep, sometimes even rugged mountain drops with hardly any flat or even gradual mountains. This type of terrain stopped humans in the history pushing their villages, farms higher/further into the mountains and sheltered the pandas for survival til today. The panda habitats with high density (in relativity) are all with very difficult terrain and hard access by humans. Although there are often domestic animals sharing the same forests with wild pandas at lower elevation or easier terrain near the villages by panda reserves in Sichuan.

Climate and Temperature-

Pandas’ living environment temperature is below 20C. The temperature variation is between -10C and 25C. Temperature below -10C or above 25C will cause uncomfort to pandas. The average temperature of panda habitats is between 10C-25C. In winter most panda habitats have temperature between -10C and 0C by the coldest, and in summer temperature reaches between 20C-25C by the warmest. Snow is common between November to the next March by the panda habitats. Cold and wet is common and pandas are used to this type of weather.

Habits and Behaviors

-Solitary and Territorial-

Giant Pandas are solitary animals. The chance of seeing 2 pandas together is low, the chance of seeing more than 2 pandas together is extremely low. The case of 2 or more pandas (usually 2) together is when a mother is with her child, or one male and one female playing during mating season, or 2 males fighting. the latter 2 cases will usually not be in a quiet way and you may hear them from far away.

Pandas mark their territory by urination, sometimes scratching too.

Why Black and White Color is a Camouflage Color?

-Sleeping-

Pandas are very relaxed animal and being largely a vegetarian they spend a lot of time eating and sleeping in a day. Pandas in the wild usually sleep in their own territory in a hollowed tree, under the rocks, in thick bamboo bushes that are quiet and hidden. Pandas have 20 different ways of sleeping, on the back, on the belly, sleeping on or against the trees, sleeping holding bamboos... Pandas spend around 10-14 hours a day sleeping although not in one set. Pandas don’t have permanent homes.

-Climbing Trees-

Pandas are good climbers. Climbing trees are common for pandas living in the wild. Pandas tend to sleep in a tree to stay away from the ground predators (wolves, jackals), usually 5-10m high above the ground on bigger trees. Panda cubs (below 3/4 years old) tend to be more active on climbing trees and this is also one of the lessons panda mother teaches panda cubs to do as a necessary surviving skill. A cub will be encouraged by mother to climb up a tree while the mother goes for food, this is to keep the cub safe while mother is away. During mating season it’s also possible to see panda climbing tree due to the fighting and playing between male and female, or fights between males.

-Dietary and Foraging-

Pandas feed on bamboos. They are categorized as omnivores but mainly eat bamboos. The majority of the bamboos eaten are arrow bamboos that are the shorter 2-3 meters bamboos rather than the tall 5m or 10m bamboos. So please note it is the bamboo bush other than bamboo forest because all bamboos actually grow in the mountains as food for pandas are the shorter arrow bamboos. From around May to October when the days are warm, bamboos are lush and abundant when pandas will roam the mountains for food. Bamboo bushes are one of the hardest place to walk for humans. It not only blocks human’s visibility in the forest but also makes noises as humans move around. While it is easy for pandas to move around under the bamboo bushes.

Aside from bamboos, pandas also feed on berries, bird eggs, smaller animals such as bamboo mouse if they happen to catch one.

-Mating & Nursing Babies-

The panda mating season is from late March to mid April. Most female pandas only have 2-3 estrus days by this time of the year. It is indeed very short. Pandas only have one time estrus a year. Female pandas usually give one birth every 2 to 3 years. Chance of twin is also high but in the wild usually only one baby survives. Babies are born usually in summer and fall between July and October each year.

The most exciting thing is to see a mother panda with a cub in the wild. The cub usually stays with mother all the time and will be taught to climb trees from around half year old (April - June) when it’s warm. Usually cubs need to learn how to climb a tree while mother is feeding herself and the cub is better to be left on the tree than elsewhere.

Normally the cub separates with mother at 1 to 3 years old. Mother will also try to chase away her child when the child is 1-3 years old and the mother is ready for another mating and birth.