THIS YEAR’S CHOSEN CHARITY IS…
What Is A Red Panda? And Why Are They So Amazing?
Red pandas primarily live in evergreen forests in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar and Nepal.
Red pandas have a reddish coloured coat which acts as camouflage against the reddish-brown moss found within the canopy of the fir trees.
They use their tails as a ‘scarf’ to keep themselves warm in the cold climate.
They are mainly herbivores, with bamboo making up around 95% of their diet. However they do sometimes eat fruit, acorns, insects and eggs.
Bamboo contains cyanide (which is toxic to humans in large quantities). Red pandas have adapted to eat bamboo shoots and young bamboo leaves in order to prevent cyanide poisoning!
Red pandas need to spend up to 13 hours a day searching for and eating bamboo in order to survive.
Red pandas are the only true panda! Giant pandas are actually a bear.
Why Are Red Pandas In Trouble?
Red pandas are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red list.
Their numbers are in decline due to habitat loss and degradation, human interference and poaching in their natural habitat.
Some areas of the red panda’s forest home is being destroyed to fuel the logging trade and to accommodate for a growing human population and their livestock. As well as this, roads are being created in order to connect people, and this makes it much easier for poachers to enter into previously unreachable areas of the forest.
Red pandas are also under threat due to poaching for their skin and other body parts which are used as a status symbol and in Chinese medicine. In addition to this, many are taken from their wild habitat to become people’s pets due to their ‘cute and cuddly appearance’.
What Do The Red Panda Network Do?
The Red Panda Network do some amazing work using both practical and education based conservation in order to work towards the protection of the red panda. Their conservation projects currently cover one million acres of forest.
They have a Forest Guardians and
anti-poaching network which patrol red panda habitats to remove traps and snares, report poaching activity to enforcement agencies and educate the locals on the importance of red pandas and their conservation.
Feral dogs are a major threat to red pandas as they will kill red pandas, as well as transmitting the rabies and canine distemper virus which are fatal to red pandas. The Red Panda Network is working to vaccinate as many dogs against the rabies virus as possible.
They have set up a nursery where they are growing bamboo and medicinal plants, amongst others. This creates an income for the local people and reduces pressure on the red panda’s forest home.
They are restoring degraded forests by planting trees and bamboo in order to rebuild red panda habitats and their food sources.
Plus more!
Click the link below to find out more about the amazing work the Red Panda Network does.
Remember:
5% of the profits from all products sold will go towards supporting this amazing charity. Your photo products could help to save the red panda.
So go on! What are you waiting for? Make some memories that keep on giving!