Here we go with another of funningforrest’s “sciencey” diaries. Why? Because, bwwaa-ha-ha-ha-ha, he loves to distress and torment you with scientific minutiae to the point of inducing mental meltdown get you to thinking. Also because he hasn’t been able to get very much new in the way of nature photographs lately. Also because he likes to talk about the natural world, and especially all the living things in it. Not that there’s anything wrong with all the non-living things in it, of course. It’s just that things that grow, wiggle and walk, growl and sing and bite and sting are a little more, um, interesting, shall we say.
The Daily Bucket is a nature refuge. We amicably discuss animals, weather, climate, soil, plants, waters and note life’s patterns.
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So why does ff want to talk about taxonomy? And why am I referring to myself in the third person? Maybe it’s that new CBD-infused coffee I just bought and am drinking as he, I mean I, type this. Uh, something something something.
The germ of this Bucket (heh, heh, see what I did there?) started a few days ago while watching Kung Fu Panda with my apartment mate, Rick. One of the central characters is Master Shifu, portrayed as a CGI (computer-generated imagery) Red Panda. Which got me to explaining to Rick how special this endangered animal is. In particular, how the Red Panda has a taxonomic family all to itself, in which it is the sole genus and specie(s). Which got me to explaining to Rick about taxonomy in general, from Kingdom all the way down to genus and species, which caused Rick to drop into beatific rapture, or was it stultification? Now, muh-wah-ha-ha-ha-ha, it’s your turn.
Relax. This won’t hurt a bit.
See, without a way of organizing all that which we call life into a systematic grouping we’d really have difficulty even knowing what we are talking about. Used to be pretty simple, living things were either plants or animals, but that was way before microscopes and DNA and such. Today this is the fundamental hierarchical system we use, with the American black bear as an example:
Left to right then, it’s most similarity to least similarity, or conversely, right to left is just narrowing it down. So the Red Panda is just like an American black bear in that it’s a eukaryote (domain), an animal (kingdom), has a backbone (phylum), has fur and mammary glands (class), and eats meat (order), but that’s where it stops. It shares no further similarity with any kind of modern bear at the genetic level.
The red panda is the only living member of the genus Ailurus and the family Ailuridae. It has previously been placed in the raccoon and bear families, but the results of phylogenetic analysis provide strong support for its taxonomic classification in its own family, Ailuridae, which is part of the superfamily Musteloidea, along with the weasel, raccoon and skunk families.[5] Traditionally it was thought to consist of two subspecies.[6] However, results of genetic analysis indicate that there are probably two distinct red panda species, the Chinese red panda and the Himalayan red panda, which genetically diverged 0.22 million years ago.[7]
--wikipedia
If anything, to my eye the Red Panda most resembles a cross between a raccoon (look at that tail) and a wolverine (look at those paws and claws) with a face most like a kitty cat. It spends a lot of time in the trees eating bamboo just like a Giant Panda does, but otherwise doesn’t look anything like one.
It was just that fact of eating a lot of bamboo, in fact little else, that likely got the Red Panda called a panda in the first place.
The Lepcha call it sak nam. In Nepal, it is called bhālu birālo (bear-cat) and hābre. The Sherpa people of Nepal and Sikkim call it ye niglva ponva and wah donka.[62] The word wậː is Sunuwari meaning bear; in Tamang language, a small, red bear is called tāwām.[63] In the Kanchenjunga region of eastern Nepal, the Limbu people know red pandas as kaala (literally "dark") because of their underside pelage; villagers of Tibetan origin call them hoptongar.[64]
Additionally, Pocock lists the vernacular names ye and nigálya ponya (Nepal); thokya and thongwa (Limbu); oakdonga or wakdonka and woker (Bhotia); saknam sunam (Lepcha).[8] Nigálya may originate from the Nepali word निङालो niṅālo or nĩgālo, a small bamboo, Arundinaria intermedia, but also refers to a kind of small leopard, or cat-bear.[65] The word pónya may originate from the Nepali पञ्जा pajā ("claw") or पौँजा paũjā ("paw").[66] 'Poonya' also means "eater of bamboo".[67] The name panda could originate from panjā.[68]
--wikipedia
Red pandas are excellent climbers, and forage largely in trees. They eat mostly bamboo, and may eat small mammals, birds, eggs, flowers, and berries. In captivity, they were observed to eat birds, flowers, maple and mulberry leaves, and bark and fruits of maple, beech, and mulberry.[9]
Like the giant panda, they cannot digest cellulose, so they must consume a large volume of bamboo to survive. Their diets consist of about two-thirds bamboo, but they also eat mushrooms, roots, acorns, lichens, and grasses. Occasionally, they supplement their diets with fish and insects. They do little more than eat and sleep due to their low-calorie diets.[22][23]
--wikipedia
So this is why taxonomy is important. The Red Panda has been confused with a bear, a raccoon, even some kind of leopard or mysterious wildcat. But it’s simply a unique kind of animal, and faces extinction.
TREEHUGGER Sustainability for All:
Habitat loss is the main threat to the red panda’s survival. Human growth in the area, combined with climate change has led to the fragmentation and loss of livable land. In addition, the red panda has faced dangers from hunting and poaching.
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About 98% of a red panda’s diet is bamboo. But unlike giant pandas that eat almost all parts of the plant, red pandas are picky and only dine on the nutrient-rich tips of the leaves and the tasty, tender shoots.
Finding enough bamboo is difficult as the red panda’s habitat keeps shrinking. When people move into the red panda’s area, they clear forests for housing and commercial development, for farming and mining. They build roads and let livestock graze in forests where they compete with red pandas for bamboo. Often habitat also is degraded because of commercial logging.
Natural disasters such as landslides, floods, cyclones, and heavy snow and rainfall all have destroyed habitat. Forest fires, invasive plant species, and issues with bamboo flowering and the death of the plant have had effects on the red panda’s habitat, says the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
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Red pandas also face threats from hunting and poaching. The IUCN reports that illegal poaching and smuggling appears to be increasing, as hunters take the animals for their distinctive pelt and meat. The WWF says red panda fur hats have been found for sale in Bhutan.
Some hunters who work in the wildlife trade capture red pandas and sell them as illegal pets. Sometimes, red pandas are caught in traps that were intended to catch other animals, such as wild pigs and deer.
When people bring livestock into the red panda’s habitat, they protect them with dogs. The dogs attack pandas, and if they are not vaccinated, the dogs can carry canine distemper, which is fatal to the red panda.
But I digress. This diary is about taxonomy, so we’ve got to go into depth about domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species.
Ah, no. You may do that all on your own. It’s hours and hours of reading and study. I may be evil, but I’m still a nice guy. Here’s a good link to get you started.
Now It’s Your Turn
What have you noted happening in your area or travels? As usual post your observations as well as their general location in the comments.
Thank you.