Endangered giant pandas are facing a new threat: the loss of their food source, bamboo. In China's Qinling Mountains, giant pandas spend most of their day eating bamboo. The plant makes up 99% of the panda's diet, with some pandas eating about 40 pounds of it a day. But Qinling's pandas may soon have to find another food source. A new study cause the loss of most of the region's bamboo by the end of the century. A team made up of researchers from Michigan State University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences studied the effects of climate change on the region's three main bamboo species. They studied the influence of rising temperatures on the spread and growth of bamboo. Bamboo is sensitive to temperature changes. "Even with a 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit increase in temperature, we found that 80% to 100% of bamboo would be gone by the end of the century," Liu Jianguo, one of the study's authors said. Shirley Martin, who came from Paris but not involved in the team said that it's really a demanding challenge for us to get a desired result. The Qinling Mountains, located in eastern China, are home to about 270 pandas. That is about 17% of the world's wild panda population. The panda is one of the world's most endangered species. In recent years, China has stepped up efforts to protect pandas. But Liu says the country has yet to consider the long-term efforts of climate change in its conservation planning. Aside from increasing nature reserve areas where pandas are protected, Liu wants China to lower its use of fuels that release greenhouse gases-as should the rest of the world. " The future of pandas," he says, " is in our hands." Which's the best title for the passage?
The Endangered Giant Pandas Saving Panda's Food Source Protecting the Environment Around us The Terrible Future of Pandas