Why do giant pandas love to eat bamboo and bamboo shoots? How much bamboo can a giant panda eat in a day?

Giant pandas usually live in dense forests. There are few large animals in their living areas, so there are no large animal carcasses for them to eat. They sometimes catch small animals like bamboo rats, but the calories these small animals can provide to giant pandas are lower than the calories they need to consume for their own activities, so they eat less and mostly choose to eat bamboo. So why do giant pandas love to eat bamboo and bamboo shoots? How much bamboo can a giant panda eat in a day? Let's take a look at the introduction of Encyclopedia Knowledge Network!

Contents of this article

1. Why do giant pandas love to eat bamboo and bamboo shoots?

2. How much bamboo can a giant panda eat in a day?

3. Will giant pandas die if they don’t eat bamboo?

4. Why can giant pandas digest bamboo?

Why do giant pandas love to eat bamboo and bamboo shoots?

Giant pandas love to eat bamboo and bamboo shoots because of changes in the surrounding environment and the evolution of their body functions. In addition, compared to other foods in the wild, bamboo is widely distributed, easy to obtain, and has less competition. Bamboo also contains a relatively high concentration of starch, which would consume a lot of energy for predators, making it not worth the cost.

The panda's food is poor in nutrition and cannot store too much energy. In order to conserve energy, it will control activities that consume too much energy.

The eating habits of giant pandas are one of their most peculiar and interesting habits. Among the more than 50 kinds of plants they eat naturally in the wild, bamboo accounts for more than half and 99% of their annual food intake.

The giant panda is endemic to China, and its main habitat in the wild is the mountainous areas of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu in China.

How much bamboo can a giant panda eat in a day?

An adult giant panda weighing 100 kg needs to spend 12-16 hours a day eating 10-18 kg of bamboo leaves and bamboo stalks, or 30-38 kg of fresh bamboo shoots, and excreting more than 10 kg of feces to maintain metabolic balance. Giant pandas love to eat cold arrow bamboo, black bamboo, and water bamboo, especially bamboo shoots.

Arrow bamboo is widely distributed in an arc shape from Foping on the southern slope of the Qinling Mountains through Nanping, Pingwu, Beichuan, Baoxing on the northern boundary of the Sichuan Basin and finally to Leibao in southern Sichuan. It grows on the edge of coniferous forests at an altitude of 2000-2800m.

Giant pandas have a huge appetite, eating about 20 kilograms of young bamboo every day. They absorb nutrients from the large amount of fiber and digest a large amount of fiber and lignin every day.

The essence of bamboo is woody grass, with more than 90% of its dry weight being lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose, with cellulose and hemicellulose accounting for up to 65%.

Will pandas die if they don't eat bamboo?

Giant pandas will not necessarily die if they do not eat bamboo. Giant pandas are omnivorous animals that not only eat bamboo, but also other meats, such as rodents, reptiles, insects, etc. However, in the habitats of giant pandas, bamboo is more abundant and is a cost-effective food source, so they mainly feed on bamboo.

In an ecological environment of natural selection, giant pandas have gradually developed and evolved into their current form. Their eating habits and living habits have basically been finalized. Giant pandas eat bamboo just like humans eat rice. Although they will not necessarily die if they do not eat it, their bodies may not get enough nutrition and they will feel uncomfortable.

Why can giant pandas digest bamboo?

Bamboo contains a lot of cellulose. The giant panda's ability to digest cellulose is attributed to the microorganisms in the intestines. Microorganisms can secrete cellulase to break down cellulose into small molecules. Although giant pandas can digest bamboo, the digestion rate is low, so they can only eat more to meet the body's energy and protein needs.

Giant pandas eat bamboo non-stop throughout the day, spending 12-15 hours in a 24-hour period chewing bamboo, and can consume up to 30 kilograms of bamboo leaves, shoots and stems every day.

The giant panda has lived on Earth for at least 8 million years. It is known as the "living fossil" and "China's national treasure", the image ambassador of the World Wildlife Fund, and is a flagship species for the conservation of biodiversity in the world.

The giant panda is endemic to China and its main habitat is the mountainous areas of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu in China.