Panda (giant and red)
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Panda is a general term that refers to two species: giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) and red pandas (Ailurus fulgens). Despite sharing the name panda, both species are not closely related. The red panda is also referred to as the lesser panda, and the use of the term "panda" generally refers to the giant panda.[1]
Although giant pandas and red pandas belong to the order Carnivora, both species have adapted to be herbivorous, although it has been concluded through molecular phylogenic analysis by Ledje and Arnason (1996a, b) that both species are not closely related.[2] While the giant panda is a representative animal of China, its natural habitat is limited to parts of the Sichuan province. The red panda has a larger natural habitat, being native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China.
Contents
Name
Of the two panda species, the first to be reported to the west was the red panda, which became known to naturalists in 1821 (Hardwicke, 1826), and remained the only known panda until the discovery of the giant panda in 1869 (David, 1869).[2]
The red panda, which was discovered first, was originally given the name "panda," but after the discovery of the giant panda, was given the name "lesser panda" as a retronym. The sharing of the name came from the belief that both species were closely related.[2]
The English word for panda was directly borrowed from French, but the origin of the French word panda is unclear. A likely candidate for the word's origin is the Nepali word pajā (पञ्जा) or pañjā (पौँजा) which means “ball of the foot” and “claws”. The Nepali words "nigalya ponya” have been translated to "bamboo footed" and is thought to be the red panda's name in Nepali[3]
In Chinese, pandas are referred to as xióngmāo (熊貓; lit. 'bear cat'), while giant pandas are dàxióngmāo (大熊貓; lit. 'giant bear cat') and red pandas xiǎoxióngmāo (小熊猫; lit. 'little bear cat') to differentiate between the species. The usage of ‘bear cat’ is due to the name originally referring to the red panda, and later being used to refer to giant pandas.
Panda lineage problem
The genetic relationship between giant pandas and red pandas has been long discussed, partly because there are so few remaining species related to them.[2]
Clarification through molecular phylogenetics
Giant pandas and red pandas have both adapted to be herbivores, and they both use bamboo as their staple food, using the enlarged forelimbs of their radial carpal bones to grasp bamboo.[2] For this similarity, it's plausible that the two species are closely related, and were sometimes placed together in the panda family (Ailuridae was originally used as the panda family model). Since being placed in two separate families, there has been continued discussion on whether or not the two species are closely related.
However, an anatomical analysis of the giant panda by David (1869) and Davis (1964) has shown that the species is closely related to the bear family (Ursidae), with molecular research supporting this.[2] On the other hand, the evolutionary relationship of the red panda has continued to be debated into the 21st century, but in the 2010s it was believed that the red pandas were a part of the mustelid superfamily, the second most divergent lineage of the super family following the skunk family.[2] Giant pandas are classified into the bear family, and red pandas are in the red panda family (the only living species is the red panda). The relationship between the two families is distant, and their similarities are only due to convergent evolution.
Lineages including pandas
The phylogeny of pandas has been simplified by M.J. Salesa et al. by excluding extinct species.[4] Furthermore, the red panda was changed to "Carnivora" and was removed from the skunk family classification.
The current red panda family (Ailuridae) is completely different from the former panda family, as now the family only contains the red panda and the fossil species it is closely related to.
References
- ↑ Johnson, Kenneth G. (1988). "Comparative Behavior of Red and Giant Pandas in the Wolong Reserve, China". Journal of Mammalogy 69 (3): 552–564. doi:10.2307/1381347. JSTOR 1381347. https://doi.org/10.2307/1381347.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Mieczyslaw, Wolsan (2012). "Evolutionary origin of the red panda (Ailurus fulgens)". Mammalian Science (Mammal Society of Japan) 52 (1): 23–40. doi:10.11238/mammalianscience.52.23. https://doi.org/10.11238/mammalianscience.52.23. Retrieved 2019-11-16.
- ↑ Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “panda (n.1), Etymology,” September 2023, doi:10.1093/oed/6983793338
- ↑ Salesa, Manuel J. (2005). "Evidence of a false thumb in a fossil carnivore clarifies the evolution of pandas". PNAS 103 (2): 379–382. doi:10.1073/pnas.0504899102. PMC 1326154. PMID 16387860.
