What Family Does the Red Panda Belong To? A Guide to the Ailuridae

We all know that the giant panda is China's national treasure, but what about the red panda? Many people think the red panda is a baby giant panda, but that is not the case; they are two different species. So, what family does the red panda belong to?

1. What family does the red panda belong to?

The red panda is an animal of the family Ailuridae. It looks like a cat, but its body is stouter than a cat's. Its fur is mostly reddish brown, but the tip of the nose, the eye rings, the area under the neck, the belly and the tip of the tail are dark brown; there are white patches on the upper part of the nose, the cheeks and the brows; the outer edge of the ears and the inside of the ears are white; the limbs and paw pads are black; the claws are milky white; and the tail has alternating rings of reddish brown and yellowish white or reddish brown and dark brown.

2. Is the red panda a protected animal?

The red panda is a protected animal, and it is a second-class protected animal in China. It is mainly distributed in Tibet (the southern slopes of the Himalayas), Yunnan, Sichuan and other provinces, and mainly lives in mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forests or evergreen broad-leaved forests with bamboo groves below 3000 m in altitude. On ordinary days it rests in large tree holes, stone caves and rock crevices, and likes to bask in the sun on sunny cliffs or the tops of large trees.

3. What does the red panda eat?

The red panda likes to eat the bamboo shoots, tender branches and bamboo leaves of Fargesia, and also eats various wild fruits, tree leaves, moss, small birds, bird eggs and other small animals, insects, etc. It especially likes to eat foods with a sweet taste. It generally comes out in the morning and evening to move about and forage, and after foraging it has the habit of rubbing its mouth and face with its paws or licking and cleaning the area around its mouth with its tongue.