Pandas eat so much bamboo that they’re sometimes affectionately known as ‘bamboo bears’.
“Bamboo makes up around 99 percent of the giant panda’s diet, but it's so low in nutrients that they can eat up to 38kg of it every single day,” says Nicola Loweth, WWF Senior Programme Advisor (Asia). "That’s the equivalent of several kilograms every hour, feeding in extended bouts across 10 to 16 hours.”
- Red panda vs giant panda: what's the difference?
- These 10 utterly gorgeous photos of giant pandas are guaranteed to make you smile
Their bodies have even adapted to be able to keep munching these roots, shoots, stems and leaves. “To pull off that kind of long lunch, pandas have evolved a modified wrist bone that functions like a thumb, along with powerful jaws capable of crushing tough, woody stems for hours on end,” adds Loweth.
WWF has shared an adorable video of a giant panda in the Qinling Mountains, China, chomping away on bamboo without a care in the world.
The charity is calling for people to join them in celebrating Earth Hour for its 20th year on 28 March by switching off for one hour. Snacking for an hour straight is optional.
- These hilarious and adorable giant panda videos capture them at their clumsiest – and very cutest
- What's the fastest growing plant? And how does it grow so fast?
More amazing wildlife stories from around the world
- “Complete intoxication.” Lemurs in Madagascar are licking millipedes – and it’s sending them into a “trancelike state”
- "Totally unexpected.” Scientists just discovered yet another extraordinary thing about the platypus
- Photographer spots snow leopard in remote Indian mountains. He wasn’t expecting it to do this
- Scientists tracked 6 ‘ghosts of the desert’ through the Saudi Arabian wilderness. This is what they found
