How much do you know about Panda Bears?

When you think of panda bears, what comes to mind? You can probably imagine that beautiful white animal with black spots. An adorable bear from the Asian continent that feeds on bamboo and whose image has stolen everyone’s heart at one time or another.

But… Do you want to know more about this fantastic animal species?

1. It is a carnivorous animal: environmental conditions meant that this animal had to adapt its diet around bamboo, but in reality it is carnivorous in nature and complements its diet by eating some small animals such as rodents.
2. It feeds on 42 different types of bamboo: none of these species is Moso bamboo (used to manufacture our Brushboo ecological toothbrushes). An adult Panda needs about 17kg of bamboo stalks per day. If it only finds bamboo leaves, 10 kg of bamboo leaves will be enough, but if it feeds only on bamboo roots, it will need to feed on almost 40 kg of bamboo roots.
3. It has very good teeth: bamboo, despite what it may seem, is a very hard and resistant plant. It requires very strong teeth to be able to chew it. Panda bears have the largest molars compared to other carnivores. If you go to the zoo and this seemingly adorable animal approaches, don’t stick your hands out too far! If you get bitten you can have a very, very bad time.
4. It looks like it has 6 toes: if you look closely, it will give you the feeling that panda bears have 6 toes. Not so, one of them is the modification of a sesamoid bone of the wrist, but visually it looks like a thumb. Thus, it gives the impression of having 6 thumbs.
5. It has a somewhat peculiar fertility period:females are fertile for only two to three days each year. Although it is true that they begin to procreate when they are only 4 years old, the short fertile period makes their reproduction very difficult, and this is why they are considered a protected species.
6. It is an almost sacred animal in China: killing a panda or trafficking its skins has been cause for the death penalty on some occasions. Today it is punishable by 20 years in prison.
7. It is a species very close to the raccoon: the panda has long been considered a procyonid (raccoon family), in fact, this species is still considered closer to the raccoon than to bears or ursids.
8. Their feces are very valuable: it is not pleasant but Panda bear droppings (about 2kg per day) are used to make paper and facilitate the biomass treatment process.
9. It does not hibernate: this type of bear cannot hibernate because its bamboo diet does not provide it with the necessary energy reserves.
10. It is an endangered species: there are currently only 1,800 Panda bears in the wild, and almost 300 in captivity.

In addition, you have surely seen this animal in a zoo, as you should know that zoos pay exorbitant amounts such as 1 or 2 million dollars a year to keep them for a decade.

At Brushboo we would prefer that these contracts did not exist, we defend that this species that represents our brush be free and respected. We only agree with their captivity when it is necessary for their reproduction or for their health.

Can you tell us what you think of this magnificent animal?

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