The red panda is the endangered mammal known for its reddish-brown fur and native range in the Himalayas.
The red panda, Ailurus fulgens, lives in high-elevation forests across the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. Its coat blends rusty red, orange-brown, black, and white, while its long ringed tail helps with balance as it moves through trees. Flexible joints and curved, semi-retractile claws make it an especially capable climber.
Although it shares the word “panda” with the giant panda, the red panda is not a smaller version of that bear. It is the only living member of the family Ailuridae and has its own evolutionary history. Bamboo forms much of its diet, but red pandas also eat fruit, insects, eggs, and small animals. They are generally solitary and most active at dawn, dusk, or night.
The species has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2008. Habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching, livestock grazing, and accidental capture in traps threaten its survival. Genetic research has also highlighted distinct Himalayan and Chinese populations, sometimes proposed as separate species.