Figure 1 indicates that the Giant Panda is considered as a Primary Consumer. The arrows are going in a horizontal order with the arrows pointing towards the apex predator which is the Bengal Tiger. This food chain suggests that the Bengal Tiger is one of the dominant predator of the food chain while the Panda only nourishes on Bamboo. Bamboo is shown as a primary producer because it can make its own food using photosynthesis.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 2 shows that the Panda is yet again a Primary Consumer or the Food Chain. Like the other Figures (diagrams), the tiger is the main apex predator of the food chain. In addition, the maggots are also included because they are scavengers who break down dead plants and animals. An arrow from the Decomposer attached with the Producer show that the plants would get essential nutrients from the maggots, otherwise dead matter and waste would pile up.
Figure 3
Fig.3-This food web shows that Pandas are prey to jackals and leopards. Photosynthesis is the beginnings of the food web as it produces the energy to help plants grow, which are the primary producers as highlighted in green. The Panda comes under the secondary consumer, as it uses photosynthesis to produce its food- bamboo. Cubs become a prey to other animals such as leopards and tigers which are known as the apex consumers. Decomposers listed on the right include bacteria and fungi which break down dead plants and animals.
Figure 4
Figure 4-The giant panda’s primary diet consists of a variety of different species of Bamboo because bamboo is so very low in nutrition, pandas spent up to 12 hours per day searching for and consuming bamboo. The arrows are pointing towards the Snow Leopard and Man as they are the top apex predator of thi...
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... a day, they do not pass waste as often as other creatures. The larger colon allows the giant panda to consume its enormous bamboo diet by helping the giant panda control its waste for longer periods of time, thus limiting the amount of times a giant panda must stop for restroom breaks.
The Panda’s Legs-Since pandas spend a great deal of their lives foraging for bamboo, their legs have strengthened over time to handle the bear's weight. A panda can consume anywhere from 20 to 40 pounds of bamboo in a single day. Giant pandas average at a weight of about 250 pounds for males and up to 220 pounds for females due to all of this bamboo consumption. The panda's legs must be able to carry this weight over long distances and up high trees for an average of 10 to 16 hours every day, to allow the panda bear to maintain the proper nutrition levels necessary for survival.
1) Inspiration: Grey wolves are considered as apex predators, meaning that they are at the top of the food chain. Grey
The major threat to their survival is the restricted and degraded habitats (Wang and Garshelis). Their habitat is not just one big area of land. In actuality, the Giant Panda’s habitat is fragmented and separated into small patches, each supporting a small population of the pandas. This fragmentation in habitat was caused by logging, deforestation, mining, poaching and by lightning speed economic development (Threats). Logging had been found to separate the once well integrated Giant Panda habitat into many sub sections (Zhou and Pan 363) and their forest habitats became increasingly fragmented by roads and railroads (Threats). Clearing the land in Giant Panda habitats had been another reason for the fragmentation of the Giant Panda’s habitat (Wang and Garshelis). The animal had been pushed higher and higher into the mountains, as their lower and flatter habitats were seized for human for agricultural activity (Wang and Garshelis). The small population due to the fragmentation is also a factor in the decrease in the population size. Studies have shown that small populations lead to a loss of genetic diversity and can lead to problems of inbreeding (Zhou and Pan
A food chain begins with the producers. Since plants get their energy from sunlight, they are producers; one of the common producers in the Sonoran Desert is the prickly pear cactus. Many different animals eat the fruit of the prickly pear cactus, including Harris's antelope squirrel. The squirrel is a consumer because it gets its energy from other organisms. In this case, the squirrel gets its energy from the fruit of the prickly pear cactus. The food chain starts with a producer, the prickly pear cactus, which obtains its energy from sunlight. The prickly pear is eaten by Harris's antelope squirrel, which, because it is the first consumer in the food chain, is called the primary consumer. The squirrel is eaten by the diamondback rattlesnake,
grizzlies will hibernate when there is a seasonal shortage of food, low environmental temperatures, or when there’s snow arrival. Grizzly bears hibernate five to seven months each year. The grizzly will enter into hibernation in October or November. During this time the grizzly bear must prepare a den and consume as much food as possible to last their hibernation period. While searching for a den the grizzly may travel many miles until it finds a suitable area that it likes. The dens are usually at elevations above 1,800 m (5,900 ft) on north-facing slopes. The reason why bears have to eat as much food as possible is because they need the energy from the food to last through the entire winter. They may eat up to 90 lbs of food per day, while trying to put on as much weight as possible. When it’s time for grizzlies to hibernate; will enter their den, and fall into a “deep” sleep. During this time the grizzlies won’t eat or drink; but instead they digest their stored up fat; (the fat used to last them through their entire hibernation.) The bear also will not urinate or defecate, but will reabsorb their urine and feces into proteins. The bear can use 25-40% of their body weight during hibernation; the bear’s heart rate and body temperature may also drop. By March or April, male grizzly bears usually emerge from the den and the females emerge in late April or May. When bears emerge from hibernation they’re
While the trophic level of primary producers is of autotrophs, the next remaining levels all represent heterotrophs. Heterotrophs can only obtain their energy by consuming of other organisms. In the tropic level of the primary consumers, these herbivores depend on these primary producers and other plants for their food. An example of a primary consumer is the larvae of chironomids, or a type of aquatic insect.
Morgan, Sally. Chapter 6.1: Feeding the World. The New Encyclopedia of Science: Ecology and Environment. 2003. 21 Feb 2008.
Dierenfeld, E.S., Hintz H.F., Robertson J.B., Van Soest P.J., Oftedal O.T. (1982), Utilization of bamboo by the giant panda. The Journal of Nutrition ,112(4):636-41.
The article compared the behavior of red pandas (Ailurus fulgens) and giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in the wild with regards to foraging, daily and seasonal activity, and land use pattern. The purpose of the study was to improve understanding of the nature of the evolutionary relationship between the two species. A combined method of behavior observation and radio telemetry was used to gather the data. The giant pandas (3 males and 2 females) were radio-collared and studied between 1981 and 1983 and the female red panda in 1984 in a 35km2 area in the Wolong Reserve in China. The activity patterns of the red panda were recorded by taking readings from a motion-sensor fitted in the radio-collar once every month from February to November. The readings were taken every 15 minutes during a 72 hour period. Her approximate locations were estimated using the radio-collar and the sites were studied further in order to understand foraging and resting behavior. Because of the rarity and the density of the vegetation in its range, the red panda was only observed for a total of 3.2 hours on four different occasions. Fecal and vegetation samples were collected every month and analyzed to determine diet composition and the nutritional content. Comparisons in activity patterns were made mainly using data from the female red panda and a male giant panda whose home ranges overlapped. Vegetation mapping through the range and telemetry points provided insight on red panda habitat use.
In this report I will be using the Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus) as my chosen species. The Polar bear is the largest land living apex carnivore in the world where males can reach a mass of over 450 Kg and females between 150 Kg to 350 Kg. Instantly recognizable by their white fur coat which is technically transparent where it is the reflection of the snow that gives the Polar bear its beautiful white coat. As a Polar bear’s skin is black allowing for some heat from sunlight to aid in respiration. They are located all around the Arctic Circle. From Canada to Greenland to Russia, their range is vast due to the travelling they must endure to reach plentiful sources of food which is primarily seals however they have been known to hunt walrus and beluga whales.
J.P.C. "Using Pandas To Play To The Public." Bioscience 42.9 (1992): 656-657. Environment Index. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.
...ing pandas pose for pictures. The pandas are starved so they will be more obedient when being photographed. Jill Robinson of Animals Asia: ''They are clearly victims of training using negative reinforcement, constant beating and lack of food until they get the trick right. '' To make sure the bears do not pose a threat to their trainers, they have their teeth and claws filed down. Animals are deprived of their basic right to live healthily.
The first type of animal according to the diet is a carnivore. Carnivores’ diets typically span the range of prey species they are able to kill and tend to be nested within one another (Justina, Kent, Robert, & Joel, 2005). Carnivore is an animal that gets food from killing and eating other animals, also known as meat eater (Carnivore, n.d.). Carnivores live in virtually every habitat on earth such as short grassland, sparse woodland, desert, thick tropical forest, oceanic waters and arctic icecap (David & Roland, 2005). Carnivores are sub-divided into two groups: land carnivore and aquatic carnivore. The nine land families;Canidae, Felidae, Ursidea, Procyonidae, Mustelidae, Mephitidae, Herpestidae, Viverridae, and Hyaenidae and three aquatic families; Otariidae, Phocidae and Odobenidae (Carnivore, n.d.).
Photograph by Joel Sartore, National Geographic Photo Ark. "Red Panda." National Geographic. 19 May 2017. Web. 19 May 2017.
While bamboo stalks and roots make up about 95 percent of its diet, the giant panda also feeds on fish and occasionally small rodents. It must eat 20 to 40 pounds of food each day to survive, and spends 10 to 16 hours a day feeding. Until recently, Washington DC's National Zoo housed Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, perhaps the most well ...