Endangered Species Portfolio By: Anisha Aggarwal

1. Endangered Species PortfolioBy: AnishaAggarwal Giant Panda bear

2. Species Profile Taxonomy Kingdom: AnimaliaPhylum:ChordataClass:MammaliaOrder:CarnivoraFamily:Ailuropodidae, or Ursidae, or Procyonidae scientific name: Ailuropodamelanoleura.

3. Continued… Giant panda bears live in small areas of the north and central of the Sichuan Province, in the mountains bordering the southern most part of the Gansu Province, and in the mountains of Shaanxi Province. They once lived in lowland areas, but farming, forest clearing, and other development now restrict giant pandas to the mountains. Giant panda bears mostly live in teresstrial areas such as broadleaf and coniferous forests with dense understory of bamboo, at elevations between 5,000 and 10,000 feet. Torrential rains, dense mists, and heavy cloud cover characterize these forests throughout much of the year. The giant panda bear is a highly specialize animal, with unique adaptations. The worldwide total estimate of the population of a giant panda bear is less than 1600 and has put the bear on the endangered species list. Their ability to survive as a species is challenging. Over the past their they're poplulation has been decreasing by an enormous amount.

4. Major Threats 1) habitat loss 2) Bamboo flowering cycle 3) illegal poaching

5. Habitat Loss The most damaging result of the reduction of the giant panda population has been the division of the panda’s habitat into little islands of forest. Pandas are isolated in these small sections of forest, because they will cross into areas where humans live. So the result is that the giant pandas cannot connect with one another to mate and have babies. Therefore decreasing the population of giant pandas because of the slow reproduction. Also lower elevation land has been claimed for agriculture so remaining habitats are now confined to above 1,500 yards, but this area too is now under pressure from human activities, which makes it hard for the giant panda bear to settle. Much of the panda's mountainous bamboo habitat has been degraded by timber logging. In the Sichuan Province alone it shrank by 50 percent between 1974 and 1989. The Chinese government banned logging in the panda's habitat in 1998.

6. Bamboo flowering cycle Bamboo flowering is part of the natural life cycle to produce seedlings for the next generation. For the bamboo species that pandas prefer to eat, they flower every 30-80 years. Part of the bamboo plant’s life cycle includes periodic die-offs after flowering. If there is not another species of bamboo the pandas will eat in the same area or in a nearby area, these pandas face death due to starvation. Due to habitat degradation and destruction, bamboo forests are no longer large and uninterrupted. They are fragmented, separated by development and human settlement which prevent the pandas from roaming freely in search of different species of bamboo to feed in times of need.

7. Illegal poaching Poaching of pandas is very uncommon now but people in the past have poached pandas for exhibitions in zoos or their pelt are illegally sold for high prices to display in museums and private collections. Giant pandas are also victims of traps that are laid down for other animals. If they manage to struggle free of these traps, they may sustain injuries that are life threatening. This makes it hard for the species to survive because it is either being killed unintentionally or it is being taken from its natural habitat to sell. Sometimes panda bears are even hunted intentionally and killed to sell their body parts for money, illegally.

8. Food Web

9. Classification Map A giant panda’s diet is almost exclusively (99 percent) bamboo. The panda will also eat grasses and occasional birds, small rodents or musk deer fawns. In zoos giant pandas eat bamboo, sugar cane, rice gruel, a special high-fiber biscuit, carrots, apples, and sweet potatoes. Jackals and Leopards eat the giant panda bear, but most of the time the giant panda bear is able to defeat the jackal and leopard.  The giant panda belongs to the phylum Chordata. The Phylum Chordata contains 3 Subphyla: the familiar Subphylum Vertebrata (mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians, and most fish), Subphylum Urochordata (tunicates, salps, and larvaceans), and Subphylum Cephalochordata (lancelets).

10. 3 organisms that belong in the phylum chordata BLACK RHINOCEROS LIZARD RED WOLVE 

11. Consequences If giant panda bears were to go extinct It would affect its ecosystem enormously. If any species was removed from its habitat there would be a huge affect on other species as well. Since giant panda bears are large consumers of bamboo, if they went extinct there would be an over growth of bamboo. Also the area that the giant panda live in are being protected by special organizations such as WWF and if the pandas were to go extinct, they would develop the area with buildings etc. causing other species of plants and animals to loose their habitats also.

12. Personal Response Biodiversity is the term used to describe the variety of life found on Earth as well as all of the natural processes. This includes ecosystem, genetic and cultural diversity, and the connections between these and all species.  There is a growing recognition that we need to protect our global biodiversity, and a growing realization that our species loss is accelerating.Not a day, hour, or even second goes by that we do not depend on biodiversity for survival. It is a very important part of life in whole.

13. Continued… Biodiversity makes up all of animal habitats and ecosystems that help essential living resources such as forests, wildlife and fisheries. Also it provides for human needs such as shelter, soil, food and most importantly medicine. Biodiversity of plants and living creatures provides us humans with most of our medicine. Out of the top 150 prescription drugs, 118 originally came from living creatures, mostly plants. Overall, seventy percent of pharmaceuticals now being used come from or are derived from natural products. Three substances that have been produced from the barks of tree species include: aspirin, from willow trees; quinine, which helps prevent malaria and is found in the bark of the quina tree; and taxol, a cancer-fighting drug derived from the bark of the Pacific yew tree.

14. Continued… Biodiversity also includes the amount of healthy living plants and trees. The larger the number of plant species means the greater the variety of crops also greater species. The more trees there are gives us more clean air to breathe and reduces pollution in the air. Since the air we breathe is a product of the photosynthesis by green plants. Biodiversity creates an ecosystem that preserves oxygen in the air, enriches soil, purifies water, also protects against flood and storm damage and regulates climate.

15. Bibliography Torres, John. Threat to the Giant Panda. Hockessin, Del: Mitchell Lane Publishers, 2009. Print. Dudley, Karen. Giant Pandas. Austin, Tex: RaintreeSteck-Vaughn, 1997. Print. "Bear Facts - Species - Giant Panda."Kidzone - Fun Facts for Kids!. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. <http://www.kidzone.ws/lw/bears/facts-giantpanda.htm>. Cheung, Joanna, and student in Geography 316. "Biography of Giant Panda." redirect. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. <http://bss.sfsu.edu/holzman/courses/spring99projects/panda.htm>. "Giant Panda Facts - National Zoo| FONZ." Welcome to the National Zoo| FONZ website - National Zoo| FONZ. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. <http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/giantpandas/pandafacts/default.cfm>. "Panda Bear." Bear! Polar bears, Panda, Koala, Black, Grizzly, Red, Brown, & More!. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2011. <http://www.bearlife.org/panda-bear.html>. "Giant Panda (Ailuropodamelanoleuca)." theBIGzoo Store. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. <http://www.thebigzoo.com/Animals/Giant "Panda Bear - Giant Panda Habitat, Facts." Bears: Polar, Grizzly Bear, Panda, Kodiak, Brown, Teddy and Black Bears. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2011. <http://www.bearplanet.org/pandabea mid-2005, the Chinese government had established over 50 panda reserves, protecting more than 10, 400km², and over 45% of remaining giant panda habitat.. "WWF - Giant panda." WWF - WWF. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2011. <http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/en