Unlocking the Mysteries of the Adorable Red Panda

Wednesday, October 15, 2014 7:00 PM EDT
Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal

Red Panda eating bamboo.
Credit: Elizabeth Freeman

The strikingly-patterned and charismatic red panda, Ailurus fulgens, is a taxonomically distinct carnivore that is vulnerable to extinction. Red pandas eat only bamboo and have developed many unique adaptations to survive on diet of such low nutritional quality. The popular zoo species is historically distributed among an important biological hotspot, the Himalayans, where only about 10,000 inidividuals remain. Although the National Zoo and Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute have been at the forefront of red panda breeding, management, and research for three decades, there is still much we have to learn about this species. Our lack of biological knowledge is a major hurdle to long-term survival of red panda populations in captivity and the wild. Drs. Copper Aitken-Palmer and Elizabeth Freeman will share their knowledge about red pandas and describe research they are conducting to advance the well-being of this adorable species through health and reproductive initiatives.

More Information: Fall Community Lecture Series

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