The red panda (Ailurus fulgens) is also known in some areas as the shining cat. It is native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It is the sole member of its genus, Ailuirs. Its diet mainly consists of bamboo, but it is an omnivore and eats anything the woodlands provide. Its ability to eat bamboo rests with it's strong and sharp curved claws. A distant relative of the giant panda, red pandas have no more than 10,000 adults left in the world, though they are protected by several countries. Experts have blamed the population decline on the loss of natural habitat, and poaching. Like giant pandas, they also have false thumbs that are extensions of the wrist bone. These thumbs aid tremendously in gripping things. Red pandas are typically shy creatures that live solitary lives except around mating season. Females give birth to one to four cubs, usually in the spring and summer. Young pandas remain in their nests for about 90 days before venturing out on their own.
The red panda had been previously classified as a relative of the raccoon (for obvious visual reasons), but later this was found to be inaccurate. Though much smaller than their distant cousins, red pandas are indeed part of the panda family.
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