Social Solitary Creatures

One thing that really struck me about these magnificent animals during my time at CCRCGP was how social these solitary bears can be.

Observing the youngsters at the panda kindergarten provided endless laughs and aw moments. These pandas spend their days lounging, eating, sleeping, and playing with other cubs around their age. Keepers house pandas at this age together for a few years. Interaction with other pandas is very important in this stage of life for these furry babies. It makes for less aggressive adult pandas and safer interactions if older pandas need to be house together for some reason. It also provides an opportunity for playmates and learning. 

Two panda "kindergardeners" relaxing after a log day of playing. 

Between two and three years of age, the pandas are moved to their own separate enclosures. In the wild, pandas will leave their mother’s side around 18 months of age. They will share a home range area with their moms until they are between two and three. The rest of their life after this point is lived in almost complete solitude. It may be hard to believe by watching the yearlings roughhouse, but they will one day travel through their lives alone.

Adult pandas like the solitary lifestyle. The only other time they come together is for mating. Males home ranges tend to overlap with multiple females ranges in the wild. Female pandas will leave scent markings indicating they are coming into estrus, or are ready to breed. Sometimes multiple males will come after finding scent marks left by a female.

Either way, it was quite a sight to see these little furry guys romping around every afternoon. As you can see in the pictures, the bears had tire swings, trees, a little swing set, and other toys to play with. They did seem to have much more fun with each other though!