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The Giant Panda Many scientists classify the Giant Panda as a raccoon, rather than a bear.The Panda's forepaw is different from the other bears. It has an elongated wrist bone that provides a sixth finger, giving the
Panda the ability to grasp bamboo stems, its
main food. The Panda's natural habitat is in the where the bamboo is plentiful. The Panda eats huge amounts of bamboo and spends 50 to 75 percent of its day feeding. Pandas stay on the ground most of the time, but climb trees for shelter or to hide from enemies.
In the second century AD the giant panda was a rare and semi-divine animals inside China. In the Han dynasty (206 BC-AC 24) the emperor's garden in the then capital Xian held nearly 40 rare animal
specials, of which the pandawas the most
highly treasured, and the poet Bai Juyi (AD 772-846) credited throughout the Chinese imperial records, as gifts or tribute on great occasions of states. But the animal was totally unknown outside the secretive "Middle Kingdom" until the declining Qing Dynasty was slowly forced to open its doors to trade and Christianity towards the end of the nineteenth century.
The giant panda is also known as the panda bear, bamboo bear, or in Chinese as Daxiongmao, the "large bear cat." In fact, its scientific name means "black and white cat-footed animal." Giant pandas live in dense bamboo and coniferous forests at altitudes of 5,000 to 10,000 feet. The mountains are
shrouded in heavy clouds with torrential rains
or dense mist throughout the year. geographic range extended throughout southern China. Fossil remains also have been found in present-day Burma.
Giant pandas are among the rarest mammals in the world -- there are probably fewer than 1,000 left in the wild. Although adult giant pandas have few natural enemies, the young are sometimes preyed upon by leopards.
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CHENGDU, China -- A newly born giant panda, weighing 157 grams (5.4 ounces), in a panda research and protection center in Wolong, southwest China's Sichuan Province. China's panda breeding centers reported a record-high 25 births this year through artificial insemination, and 21 of the cubs survived. 1. How many cubic centimeters of water weigh 157 grams? 2. How many cubic centimeters of water weigh 5.4 ounces? 3. How many pounds did the baby panda weigh? 4. How many kilograms did the new baby weigh? 5. What fraction of the giant panda babies survived? 6. What fraction of the giant panda babies did no live? 7. About what percentage of baby pandas survived? (estimate) 8. About what percentage of giant panda babies died? (estimate) 9. The exact percent of survivors is calculated by dividing the (larger) bottom number of the fraction into the (smaller) top number
10. The exact percent of non-survivors is calculated by dividing the (larger) bottom number of the
fraction into the (smaller) top number. _________________________________________________________________ Giant Panda Questions
1. About how much do newborn giant pandas weight?
2. Do most newborn giant panda babies survive?
3. How do many scientists classify the giant panda?
4. What is different about a giant panda’s forepaw?
5. What is the main food of the giant panda?
6. Where are most giant pandas found in the wild?
7. When do giant pandas climb trees?
8. Why did the ancient Chinese believe giant pandas were special?
9. When might a giant panda skin be given as a gift in ancient China?
10. What does the Chinese expression “Daxiongmao” mean?
11. At what altitudes do the giant panda live in the wild?
12. Bamboo grows best in wet, humid places. Why would such a place appeal to the giant panda?
13. How common are giant pandas?
14. What animal is sometimes a predator for the giant panda?
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