Feeding the paradox: development of applied nutrition programs for giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)

摘要

Ecological conditions, including food resource availability, are significant evolutionary pressures that result in morphologic and nutritional adaptations of a species. Such adaptations may allow a species to thrive and procreate, or could ultimatelylead to their extinction. These forces sometimes result in highly specialized species, uniquely capable of utilizing an abundant resource that is under- or unutilized by other species in that ecosystem, thus avoiding or minimizing resource competition. Such specialized species, especially those that are highly selective feeders, may have compromised their ability to rapidly adapt to other food sources during periods of food restriction in nature or when fed nutritionally dissimilar diets under captive conditions. Examples of such species include koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) , giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) and red pandas (Ailurus fulgens) (Schaller et al. 1985).