Speaking of the giant panda, it is the representative of the "cute animals" in the animal world. As a unique animal and "living fossil" species in my country, the giant panda is very popular not only in our country but also around the world. Foreign countries want Countries that have loaned giant pandas to my country are lined up. No, two giant pandas have been loaned to Qatar for this World Cup in Qatar.

However, as cute as it is, we cannot ignore the strength of the giant panda itself. Although it mainly feeds on bamboo, it is still a carnivore, and it is a member of the Ursidae family like the ferocious brown bear and black bear. .

So, how strong is the giant panda really? Among carnivores, what rank does it belong to? Let’s find out together.

The strength of giant pandas

Giant pandas are an ancient species. Their ancestors, the pandas, appeared on the earth about 8 million years ago. However, the ancestors of giant pandas They are far less big than today's pandas, slightly larger than today's foxes, and their eating habits are not like today's giant pandas. They are pure carnivorous animals.

From the perspective of food habits, today’s giant pandas are somewhat “downgraded”, but in fact, giant pandas survive today by eating bamboo, because the period when the original pandas appeared happened to be a period of very fierce competition. In that period, there were not only powerful saber-toothed tigers, but also full-fledged canids. Compared with their size, the primitive pandas were no match for the big cats at that time. Compared with their numbers, the primitive pandas, which lived alone, were even less capable of fighting.

However, it is precisely in such a predicament that the panda has successfully survived to this day by continuously increasing the proportion of plant food and migrating to high-altitude bamboo forests to avoid competition with other carnivores. Therefore, the change in food is a wise move by giant pandas.

However, today’s giant pandas’ chubby and seemingly bulky bodies, coupled with their habit of eating bamboo, do make it easy for people to underestimate their combat effectiveness. Some people even have the idea of ​​“I can do it if I want to”, and Someone really did this.

According to statistics, in less than 20 years from 2000 to 2019, there were 18 incidents of giant panda attacks on people, 2 of which occurred in the wild environment. The reason was that villagers rounded up giant pandas and were attacked. Counterattack.

The remaining 16 cases all occurred in captivity, 10 of which were caused by illegal entry into giant panda activity venues, and the remaining 6 cases were caused by the reporter's violation of regulations and giant pandas we mentioned above. In the group photo, two cases were about staff being attacked while feeding giant pandas, one was about a breeder who was attacked for violating regulations, one was about a wild panda biting a staff member, and another was about a staff member luring giant pandas back to their enclosures. was bitten.

From these giant panda bite incidents, we can find that most of the people who were bitten regarded the giant panda as a "cat" and thought it was not aggressive, so they only thought about having sex with the giant panda." "Intimate interaction". But in fact, as a carnivore, giant pandas have a high probability of attacking intruders because they have a strong sense of territory.

Although the giant panda looks bulky, it is actually a "fat paper" with great offensive capabilities and flexibility. In a complex bamboo forest environment, the giant panda can burst into a run of 40 kilometers per hour. Speed, this is equivalent to running 11 meters in one second. No one can run at this speed in this environment.

And the giant panda’s tree climbing ability is also very strong. Climbing a tree more than ten meters high is just like playing. The most important thing is that as a bear family, although the giant panda’s claws cannot be retracted, The sharpness is also worse than that of cats, but the thick and 5 cm long claws are no joke. When this claw goes down, it will at least be a deep wound, and this does not take into account its striking power. , as a giant bear with an average weight of 100 kilograms, its slap can at least knock down an adult.

The most deadly thing about carnivores is their teeth. Although the teeth of giant pandas are often used to chew bamboo, they are also unambiguous in eating meat and bones. They can bite through iron basins, which is why they are called "iron eaters". "Beast" title.

The canine length of an adult giant panda can reach 3 cm. Although not as long as the canine teeth of a liger, it can still explode with an average bite force of 350 pounds (approximately 160 kilograms). You must know that some can easily tear The average bite force of a dog that opens our clothes and bites us is just over 100 points. The bite force of 160 kilograms is enough to break a bone.

So, facing a giant panda is equivalent to facing a carnivore weighing 100 kilograms, with thick claws and powerful bite force. Who can not be confused?