Question
Download Solution PDFComprehension
Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow.
Red pandas and giant pandas share a similar name—and a love for bamboo—but they aren't closely related. Scientists think that red pandas are more closely related to weasels, raccoons and skunks. And while giant pandas spend most of their time plodding around on the ground looking for food, red pandas spend about 90 per cent of their time in the trees in the misty mountains of Nepal, Myanmar and central China, where they live.
Spending time in trees is how these animals avoid predators, such as snow leopards. Their reddish coats and white face markings provide camouflage in the red-brown moss and white lichen of trees where they live. About the only time red pandas go to the ground is to, um, go. And they scamper down tree trunks headfirst. How? They rotate their ankles 180 degrees—that's like being able to turn your foot backwards. The move gives their curved claws a better angle to hang on to the bark. Red pandas lick themselves clean, just like house cats do. Newborns hardly have any fur on the bottoms of their feet. The fur grows as they get older. Red pandas wrap their tails around themselves to keep warm in their chilly habitat. They eat about 20,000 bamboo leaves every day.
Red pandas are endangered. Their forest homes are being cut down, and poachers hunt them for their fur. And their adorableness might put them in more danger since they're ideal targets for illegal pet trade.
Luckily, people are trying to help. For instance, the Red Panda Network hires local people to be forest guardians. These panda pals keep watch over the red pandas in Nepal, replant bamboo and help paying tourists observe them without disturbing the creatures. Other organisations are using high-tech methods to track poachers. By taking a DNA sample from a red panda rescued from the black market, conservationists can learn where the animals are being taken from.
Which of the following is a correct fact from the passage?
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)
Detailed Solution
Download Solution PDFThe correct answer is: Red Pandas use their reddish coats and white face markings to camouflage.
Key Points
- Explanation: The passage states that Red Pandas use their reddish coats and white face markings to blend into their environment, which helps them avoid predators. This aligns with option 1, which mentions their use of camouflage.
- Why the other options are incorrect:
- Red Pandas spend most of their time on the forest ground looking for food: Red Pandas are arboreal animals and spend a significant amount of time in trees rather than on the forest ground.
- Red Pandas are closely related to Giant Pandas and share a diet of bamboo: While Red Pandas do eat bamboo, they are not closely related to Giant Pandas. They belong to their own unique family, Ailuridae.
- Red Pandas cannot be kept as pets and hence are not a part of the illegal pet trade: Red Pandas are indeed part of the illegal pet trade despite the fact that they cannot be kept as pets due to their specific habitat and dietary needs.
- In summary, option 1 is the correct fact as it accurately describes how Red Pandas use their coloration for camouflage. Options 2, 3, and 4 contain inaccuracies regarding their behavior, classification, and the pet trade.
Last updated on Feb 8, 2025
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