San Diego Zoo Pandas’ ‘Five Star Dining’ Experience Will Give Anyone FOMO
At the beginning of August, the San Diego Zoo's giant pandas made their public debut, and people have been flocking to the zoo to see them ever since. The Zoo shared a cool video on Wednesday, August 21st of what the pandas eat, which is bamboo of course, but they share some facts about bamboo that you might not know.
The Zoo explains that there are over 1,000 species of bamboo in the world, and pandas are very specific about which kind they want depending on the season. Pandas are so picky that the Zoo sent samples of their bamboo to China for the pandas to try out before they headed to the Zoo! Because of this, the Zoo grows 12 different species just for the pandas to eat, as well as about 100 ornamental varieties that they'll probably end up eating as well. Listen on to learn more.
While I found the Zoo's bamboo facts interesting, what really blew me away was what they said in their caption, "All that fiber has to go somewhere which is why pandas poop around 40 times per day." That's a whole lot of cleaning up someone has to do! @Abby noticed this fact too and said simply, "The caption!" while @Kaitlin Willow was as shocked as I was, "40 TIMES?!"
Related: San Diego Zoo Announces Their Pandas’ Public Debut Date and It’s Right Around the Corner
How Much Bamboo Do Giant Pandas Eat Each Day?
Did you know that the word 'panda' is derived from the Nepali word for “bamboo eater”? It's a fitting name since pandas eat almost nothing but bamboo each day, and fortunately for the Zoo, bamboo grows fast because they need a lot of it! WWF shared, "Bamboo contains very little nutritional value so pandas must eat 12-38kg every day to meet their energy needs." That's 26 to 83 pounds of bamboo a day...times two! They go on to say, "Giant pandas possess the digestive system of a carnivore, although they have evolved to depend almost entirely on bamboo."
I always thought that they only ate bamboo, so after reading that, I wondered what else the pandas eat. A to Z Animals explained that they do actually eat other things occasionally including:
Bamboo shoots, leaves, and culm (roughly 20 species, 99% of overall diet)
Meat (pikas, rodents, insects)
Carrion
Crops (wheat, pumpkins, kidney beans, livestock feed)
I had no idea that pandas ate meat or anything other than bamboo! A to Z surprised me even more when they shared, "Additionally to bamboo and the occasional protein, pandas also love fruit! They especially love apples. Pandas have also been known to like something known as a “panda cake” which is basically just steamed corn bread. In the summer, pandas enjoy frozen ice with bits of apple inside them to cool them down. Furthermore, pandas enjoy veggies like carrots, ginseng and even some funguses."
I love learning random animal facts like these! I wonder if the Zoo feeds their pandas anything other than bamboo or if only wild pandas eat the other things mentioned. I might reach out to them and see if I can find out!
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