This September 16, International Red Panda Day is commemorated, a day to raise awareness about the importance of caring for and protecting the #Red panda. And, also, give visibility to the difficult situation it faces in nature and that is leading it to extinction.

As it is a special day, at BIOPARC Fuengirola we want to bring you a little closer to this curious and particular species, revealing 5 curiosities about it:

– He loves life in the trees. It is an animal that spends most of its time in trees, where it even sleeps. It is usually most active at night, at dusk and dawn, when it goes out in search of food.

– Their diet is based almost exclusively on bamboo. 90 percent of their diet is made up of this plant. Roughly, a red panda ingests 20 percent of its body weight in bamboo every day.

– Red pandas lick themselves to clean themselves, just like domestic cats do.

– Newborns barely have hair on the soles of their feet. The fur grows as they grow.

– Despite having a name very similar to that of giant pandas, they are not closely related. They are closer to animals like weasels or raccoons.

 La IUCN It is estimated that there are fewer than 10.000 red pandas left in the wild. In the last fifty years its population has decreased by 40%. Deforestation, urbanization and the transformation of land for agriculture are its greatest threats. Human growth in its native area combined with climate change has led to the fragmentation and loss of habitable land. In addition, the red panda faces dangers such as poaching for its beautiful, reddish fur.