Pandas used to be meat-eaters!

Scientists say the ancestors of the bamboo-loving animals were carnivores and had a more varied diet, say scientists

Pandas exist on a diet of solely bamboo, but their ancestors enjoyed a more varied diet that once included meat. 

It is thought the black-and-white bears evolved into vegetarians slowly over thousands of years, according to Daily Mail.

The most likely explanation is that they undertook changes in habitat, where available food types varied.

It remains unknown what meat the ancient bears would have enjoyed.

Professor Fuwen Wei, co-author of the study, said: ‘It has been widely accepted that giant pandas have exclusively fed on bamboo for the last two million years. Our results showed the opposite.

‘They probably adapted to a variety of habitat types other than the cool forests of modern pandas.’

The data was sourced by analysing bone collagen of modern pandas (1970s to 2000s) and other mammals.
 
This was then compared to bone collagen isotopes of ancient pandas collected from seven archaeological sites across China.

That showed ancient and modern pandas are isotopically distinct from one another, suggesting differences in their dietary habits.

Thus, ancient pandas most likely had a varied diet, similar to that of other mammalian species that lived alongside them.

The researchers also suggest that dietary habits of pandas evolved in two phases.

First, the pandas went from being meat eaters or omnivores to becoming dedicated plant eaters. Only later did they exclusively dine on bamboo.
 
The researchers say they would now like to figure out when exactly pandas shifted to the specialised diet they have today.

To find out, they plan to collect and study more panda samples from different historical times over the last 5,000 years.

N.H.Kh