Ecology of Red Pandas

Ecosystem

In order to get to know the red panda better, let's familiarize ourselves with their ecosystem! From fungi, to mammals, to invertebrates, there are numerous and various species all around the environment.

Yellow Groove Bamboo or Phyllostachys Aureosulcata

This form of bamboo among others, is an invasive species and can grow up to three feet in a single day. Therefore, while not threatened, it's important for red pandas to keep eating bamboo in order to maintain its rapid growth.

Kingdom: Plantae

Phylum: Magnoliophyta

Class: Magnoliopsida

Order: Poales

Family: Poaceae

Genus: Phyllostachys

Species: Phyllostachys aureosulcata McClure

Himalayan Jumping Spider or Euophrys Omnisuperstes

Small and toxic jumping spider that lives at high elevations making it one of the most “highest known permanent resident on earth” and not threatened.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Anthropoda

Class: Euchelicerata

Order: Araneae

Family: Salticidae

Genus: Euophrys

Species: Euophrys omnisuperstes wanless

Snow Leopard or Panthera Uncia

This beautiful big cat is currently threatened because of hunting and habitat loss. Scientists estimate there are only about 4,000 to 6,000 snow leopards left in the world.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Felidae

Genus: Uncia

Species: Uncia uncia

Himalayan Pine or Pinus Wallichiana

This species is said to be stable and of least concern. It has external medical uses for wounds, sores, burns, boils, and more.

Kingdom: Plantae

Phylum: Coniferophyta

Class: Pinopsida

Order: Pinales

Family: Pinaceae

Genus: Pinus

Species: Wallichiana

Himalayan Vulture or Gyps Himalayensis

This species is near threatened but the population is stable. They are said to be one of the two largest old world vultures and true raptors.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Aves

Order: Accipitriformes

Family: Acciptridae

Genus: Gyps

Species: Gyps Himalayensis

Birdwing or Troides Helena

This large butterfly is a vulnerable, yet protected species because of unregulated collecting of wild specimens and habitat loss from deforestation.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Anthropoda

Class: Insecta

Order: Lepidoptera

Family: Papilionidae

Genus: Troides

Species: T. Helena

Himalayan Black Bear or Ursus Thibetanus Laniger

While listed as a vulnerable species, this bear has a white patch of crescent hair on its front while the rest of its fur is mostly black. This feature gives this bear its other common name of “moon bear”.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Ursidae

Genus: Ursus

Species: Ursus thibetanus

Caterpillar Fungus or Ophiocordyceps Sinensis

Often used in traditional medicine to treat illnesses. It is a rare combination of a caterpillar and fungus found in Sikkim at altitudes above 3,800 m. Recently listed as a vulnerable species because of its over exploitation by humans.

Kingdom: Fungi

Phylum: Ascomycota

Class: Sordariomycetes

Order: Hypocreales

Family: Ophiocordycipitaceae

Genus: Ophiocordyceps

Species: O. Sinensis

Himalayan Monal or Lophophorus Impejanus

This species is currently of least concern when it comes to endangerment and is known as a pheasant native to himalayan forests and shrublands at elevations of 2,100-4,500 m.

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Aves

Order: Galliformes

Family: Phasianidae

Genus: Lophophorus

Species: Lophophorus Impejanus

Lichen or Psora Altotibetica

This specific form of Lichen is known to be a new species and not endangered. The genus "psora" consists of 30 species growing on soil and rock.

Kingdom: Fungi

Phylum: Ascomycota

Class: Lecanoromycetes

Order: Lecanorales

Family: Psoraceae

Genus: Psora Hoffm.

Species: Psora Altotibetica Timdal, Obermayer, and Bendiksby

Red Panda Niche

Red pandas have an important role in their ecosystem, controlling the populations they prey on. Not only that, but they also control the growth of the bamboo they mainly eat as it can overgrow and overtake other plants in a detrimental way. While they live in South Asia’s middle mountains in forests, the people, plants, and animals of South Asia can live a healthy life if the forests are kept intact. As they spend most of their nocturnal time in trees, red pandas are always interacting with different types of trees in order to sleep, hangout, or eat. However, they are known to be solitary animals and usually don’t interact with other animals unless it's mating season. The males keep to themselves while the females spend a lot of time with their cubs until they reach maturity.

If red pandas ever do encounter predators of their own, they either climb, use their claws, teeth, or make noises. When feeling threatened, their first defense is to escape with their claws up a tree where they feel the most comfortable. They can even stand on their back legs while harling and hissing to appear bigger. On the other hand, their super sharp teeth can rip through the predator's flesh if need be.

Below, we will go more into depth on three types of organisms that the red panda most commonly interact with in their environmental niche.

Trees

As mentioned earlier, trees are so important in red pandas' lives as they spend the majority of their time in them. For a creature, this is known as being an arboreal animal. They not only live in trees, but they eat parts of them, and build their nests in them to give birth to cubs. Thanks to their sharp claws and long, but broad tails, they stay well balanced on trees as they move from place to place. They have no specific kind of tree they live in but here are some commonly found trees in the forests they reside in: Oak, pine, maple, birch, beech, fir, larch, and deodar trees. With deforestation still happening all around the world, it’s indubitably a major reason why these creatures are endangered.

Snow Leopard or Panthera Uncia

The primary predator of the red panda is known to be the fierce snow leopard. Red panda cubs can be hunted by birds of prey and other small carnivores as well. The snow leopard is a very athletic cat that has speed and agility which makes the red panda no competition in comparison. Therefore, they parish when caught off guard or chased down. In order to save themselves, the red pandas are more experienced with climbing trees which helps them escape into high altitudes. If cornered, their last defense is to use their claws and teeth which sometimes works with them being very naturally sharp.

Yellow Swallowtail Butterfly or Papilio Machaon

While considered carnivores, red pandas mostly enjoy eating plants and bamboo but do not obtain enough nutrients from them. This causes the red pandas to be on an energy budget and cannot chase down predators as well as they need to. If they do choose to hunt, which they seldom do, they will chase after small birds, insects, or grubs. Living in the himalayas, the yellow swallowtail or papilio machaon is a perfect juicy prey for the red panda because of their very slow and vulnerable nature. Once they turn into butterflies, they would be harder to catch therefore mostly hunted in their caterpillar stage. These sources of food provide an immense amount of better nutrition.

References

Carson, A. (2022, January 1). Do red pandas live in trees? BestofPanda. Retrieved December 13, 2022, from https://bestofpanda.com/do-red-pandas-live-in-trees/.

Ecological niche. Red Panda: Endangered Species. (2014, June 4). Retrieved December 12, 2022, from https://redpandarocks.wordpress.com/ecological-niche/.

Integrated Taxonomic Information System - Report. ITIS. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2022, from https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=16373#null.

Invertebrates. Great Himalayan National Park. (2015, January 16). Retrieved November 29, 2022, from https://greathimalayannationalpark.com/invertebrates/.

Pinus wallichiana / Himalayan white pine: Conifer species. American Conifer Society. (n.d.). Retrieved November 29, 2022, from https://conifersociety.org/conifers/pinus-wallichiana/.

Red Panda. Red Panda - Facts, Diet, Habitat & Pictures on Animalia.bio. (n.d.). Retrieved December 12, 2022, from https://animalia.bio/red-panda.

Red Panda - facts, Diet & Habitat Information. Animal Corner. (2022, November 7). Retrieved December 12, 2022, from https://animalcorner.org/animals/red-panda/.

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