Home Safari - Zoofari Edition - Red Panda

Hello and welcome back to another home safari. My name is Michelle Barrett and I am a clinical pharmacist at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Cincinnati Children's has a long history of collaboration with the Cincinnati Zoo and is so excited to sponsor today's segment. I am here with my husband and Cincinnati Zoo Foundation trustee Peter Barrett. Together we are proud to be the chairs for the first ever virtual zoofari, taking place this Friday, September 25th. Be sure to register and tune in for a wild evening of behind the scenes experiences, while also providing vital support to the zoo's emergency fund, including an opportunity to name our newest red panda baby. Speaking of red pandas, let's turn things over to the star of the show. And this here is Lynn, and Lynn is seven years old and she is one of our red pandas. And she's actually the mom of the baby that you guys are actually going to help us name. So the baby, he's actually about four pounds now. And Lynn here, she is about 16 pounds. And you guys might be wondering what we're feeding her. We're feeding her some pieces of apples, one of her favorite treats. And then right next to her, we've given her some bamboo. But as you see, she clearly is more interested in some of these apple treats. But these guys, you can see they're covered in lots of fur. So they do live in really high altitudes. So it's really, really cold up in the Himalayan mountains. And these guys, they eat mostly bamboo. So they eat about 20,000 leaves a day. And they eat only this leafy part. So a lot of people talk about the differences between giant pandas and red pandas. And one difference is a giant panda, they actually eat all of the bamboo. But since these guys, they just eat the leaves, they have to eat quite a few. But something kind of cool about them is they actually are carnivores. But their diet is mostly that bamboo. And since you're really getting a good look at her face, you can see she has those dark lines that run right underneath of her eye. And that's to kind of help out with some of the sun. And she also just demonstrated using that semi-opposable thumb. So these guys, they have that. And that can kind of help with eating some of that bamboo as well. And these guys, they spend lots of time high in trees. They're really, really good climbers. You can see all those claws right there, which are actually semi-retractable. And Lynn, she is doing so good right now. She also has that really long tail, which can help out with balance. Also, when the temperatures are really cold, she can actually wrap that tail around her, kind of like a scarf, to help keep herself warm. So these guys, again, with these sharp claws, they have really, really sharp claws. They definitely don't make the best pet. We always tell people, dogs and cats, they're used to being with people. Red pandas are actually very solitary animals. So she is very happy to be eating some apple and hanging out with us. But they do best, obviously, in their native habitat. Or here with us, we're actually working on breeding red pandas as well, too. And there are actually two different species of red panda. So it was thought that there was two subspecies. So right now, you guys are checking out one of our sty in red pandas. But if you've been to other zoos, you may have seen pandas that have a lighter color above their eyes. And those are called fulgens. So scientists are now doing a little more research and learning that there's actually two different species of panda. Their ranges do overlap just a little bit. But they do live in separate areas. But they're found in parts of China, parts of Myanmar, parts of northern India, Nepal. But again, up high where it's really, really cold. So you might be able to see right behind you. So we're actually in a little behind-the-scenes area. So Lynn came in here to help us out with this program. But she actually has a nice big habitat right behind you guys. So she spends lots of time high in the trees. However, in the heat of the summer, we actually have little boxes throughout the area. That if it's really warm, they can actually go into some air conditioning to cool off. Because again, where they come from, it's much cooler. Some people ask, you know, what's the best animal to come check out in the wintertime? And red panda is a great one. They love the snow. They love the cold weather. They spend lots of time running around in the trees. So we always tell people red panda is a great one to come see throughout the winter. Deanna wants to know what their fur feels like. So it's not quite as soft as you would think. They have some of those coarse guard hairs on top of all that soft downy hair. So they do look really, really soft, and they are. But it's not quite as soft as you would think. Irvina wants to know if they're actually related to regular pandas. So great question. So when these guys were first studied, they originally thought they were closely related to a raccoon. As you can see, they look a lot like a raccoon. So they did some more research, and then it was thought they're more closely related to a bear, which is a giant panda is in that bear family. But as they continue to do more research, they found out these guys are actually in their own family. So their closest relative is actually a mustelid, so like a skunk, a weasel. Those are closer relatives than the giant panda. However, they do eat the same food. Their ranges also overlap a little bit in China. But other than that, they are very different animals. Cubs has Lynn had. Oh, gosh, she's had quite a few. So the two cubs, Audra and Lenore, that she had last year, they're actually in the outside habitat right now entertaining guests. And then she has, again, the panda that you guys are named, the single cub right now. I'm not sure the exact number, but I believe she is such a good mom. Every year she has panda cubs, and they do a wonderful job. And she takes care of them all herself, so we don't have to do a lot. She's a really, really good mom. Karen was asking if they could see her tail. Oh, yeah, let me see. So I've been giving her some apple, and now I'm going to shift to some banana. But let me just, oh, there we go. I was going to see if I could ask her to turn around. Oh, that's funny. I was wondering after I gave her some apple if she was still interested in some banana. But, yeah, you can get a good look at that tail. Some people ask if it's prehensile. So it's not actually prehensile. They're not going to be able to hang from it, but they do certainly use that tail with balance. And, again, when it's really cold, they can certainly wrap that tail around them. We'll sometimes see them on a cooler day. They'll be curled up in a little ball with that tail wrapped around them. And then on a hot summer day, people check out the panda. Sometimes they'll be up high in a tree, and they'll have their legs just hanging down. And that's kind of how they stay cool. But, again, these guys, they do have access to air conditioning in the summertime if they choose it. So it's kind of their choice. Karen wants to know if they make any noises. So they make a couple different sounds. They make what's called a huff quack. It's kind of a high-pitched sound. And then their cubs, they also can make kind of a high-pitched sound to kind of communicate to their mom if they need something. And, obviously, she speaks the cub language, so she knows whatever that may or may not be. But they're pretty quiet for the most part. But they do have a few sounds that they'll make. Oh, there she is demonstrating using that semi-opposable thumb. So these guys, some people want to know what do we feed them at the zoo. So, obviously, banana. And then we also give them some leaf-eater biscuits. I should have brought one. When she eats a leaf-eater biscuit, she does use that opposable thumb. And she'll just hold that biscuit and demonstrate how she uses it. And sometimes when she's eating bamboo, she'll be doing that as well. But, clearly, my bananas and apples are much more reinforcing than that tasty bamboo, which I just cut. So it's very fresh. Oh, there it is. Perfect. Yay. Eden would like to know if they can retract their claws. So they're what's called semi-retractable. I just kind of saw. She can move them in a little bit. Some animals, it's fully retractable. But these guys, they can move a little bit, but not fully retracted. And, again, these claws are extremely important when climbing up and down trees. So their ankles are really, really flexible. Some animals are really good at climbing up trees. Red pandas, not only are they good at that, they're also really good at climbing down because they can rotate those ankles really far. That way they can go down a tree very slowly, which I'm out of banana. So there's a good chance she might start waking her way down. You guys might get a chance to see that. Do they have an odor? They do. I think all animals have a bit of an odor. These guys, since they eat so much bamboo and so many different types of food, they definitely go to the bathroom a lot. So there is a lot of that. But I think every animal has a bit of an odor. But it's not really strong like a skunk or a porcupine. It's not necessarily that strong. Let me show you that my cup is empty. Check that out. About how long do they live? Eight-year-old Asher wants to know. In zoos, they can live 15-20 years. I believe there was a panda that would live to be in their young 20s. Out in their native habitat, it's around 8-10 years. She might start exploring a little bit now that she knows her apple and banana have all been eaten. You guys will get a chance to watch her maneuver very easily. Pandas in the wild are very solitary. They only come together at breeding time. She's on her own right now, but she certainly doesn't mind that. She certainly likes saying hello to everyone, too. They only come together in January and February. That's when breeding happens. The cubs are usually born in June or July. They'll stay with mom until the next breeding season. Otherwise, pandas do live on their own. If you ever see a panda out on its own, they don't mind that. In zoos, they certainly don't mind staying in pairs. We do sometimes have pairs of pandas that will hang out. She is a female, but we do have a male panda as well. He does a lot of scent marking when he's in here. At the base of his tail, he has scent glands. He does lots of that scent marking. Lynn might be checking out if there's any of those smells around. That is one way to communicate you're asking if they have an odor. They do. Maybe she was thinking about it. Oh, yay! She's going to eat some bamboo. Now that she realizes the bananas and apples are all gone. They have scent glands at the base of their tail. They also have some on their feet, on the pads of their feet. Their eyes are really small. That's definitely not the scent they rely the most on. They hear really well. They can also smell really well. I'm not quite sure. People are still trying to figure out different animals and what colors they can see. We constantly keep learning more and changing that answer. I'm not quite sure on what colors they can see in all. Most animals see different shades. Shades are a big thing. Movement they really focus in on. I'm not quite sure on what color they can see. Thank you guys so much for joining. Thank you so much for your support. Again, our baby red panda. We are looking forward to seeing what name you guys come up with. Enjoy the rest of your day.