Despite being one of the most loved animals, pandas are not immune to the devastating effects of climate change. Bamboo, perhaps the only source of food for the endangered black and white bear, grows quickly and reproduces extremely slowly. The fact that only once every thirty to thirty-five years, flowers and fruits appear on bamboo shoots, greatly affects its ability to adapt to changes in climatic conditions associated with global warming. Scientists warn that areas of bamboo forests in the Qinling Mountains, where pandas live, may disappear. The area of bamboo thickets, which cute bears feed on, due to climate change, may noticeably decrease in the near future. The author of an article published in the scientific journal Nature Climate Change, dedicated to changes in the planet's climate, points to the need to create food reserves for herbivorous bears.
Giant pandas (photo) are the only representatives of the Bear family thatfeed mainly on plant foods.
The daily diet of a "vegetarian" bear consists of about 20 kg of bamboo. Recently, ecologists began to notice that in some places these animals began to switch to other food sources. So, in the province of Sichuan, cases when pandas climbed into pigsties and took food from their inhabitants became more frequent.
A group of scientists from the American University in East Lansing (Michigan) conducted observations in the mountains of Central China, where pandas live. About a fifth of the entire population of the species lives here. Ecologists studied the climate in the Qinling Mountains, other local factors, and estimated the rate of decline in protected bamboo groves. The data obtained allowed the researchers to develop a special climate model and make a forecast of how the most common types of bamboo will grow. Ecologists' conclusions are not encouraging: all areas of bamboo forests in the Qinling Mountains, where pandas currently live, should disappear by the end of the 21st century.
By that time, according to environmentalists, the habitat of the bamboo bear will be reduced by about 80, or even 100 percent. Only a few high- altitude areas will remain suitable for bamboo to grow, where it is unlikely to be able to penetrate due to the extremely slow reproduction cycle. But if this happens, the giant pandas will have a chance to survive.
Lack of food will lead to forced migration of herbivorous bears to new habitats. However, the animals will be preventedcuttings and buildings between individual sections of bamboo groves. It should also take into account the features of reproduction of this species of bears. Baby pandas are born on average once every 2-3 years.
Besides, the female feeds only one cub. Michigan State University scientists are pushing for urgent action to protect areas of bamboo groves where pandas now live. Ecologists hope that the results of their research will be taken into account by the authorities of the People's Republic of China and other countries in southeast Asia when developing preventive measures that contribute to the conservation of the giant panda population.
