Friday, May 9, 2014

Pandas, Cheetah, Humans and Other Doomed Species

What is it that dooms a species to extinction? In some cases it is because of predatory pressures or habitat loss, but history tells us that the lack of adaptability is often the most telling in extinction events.

Climate and dietary demands change, over time, and the key to a specie's survival is the ability to adapt within that time frame. As a species, human being's ability to adapt has made us successful. The problem that arises is when a species falls into a niche.


Pandas have a narrow niche. Their diet consists of 99% bamboo. The problems occur when the bamboo begins its cycle of mass flowering and complete die-off. At the point of die-off, the main food source for the panda is gone if they do not have a second species of bamboo to eat. With loss of habitat the chance of having a second species of bamboo diminishes. The mass flowering and die-off has a direct effect on humans also. Watch Rat Attack HERE.


The cheetah