The endangered pandas in Qinling Mountains might face a new threat: the loss of their food—bamboo, which makes up 99% of their meals.

Adult pandas spend most part of the day eating bamboo and have to take in at least 40 pounds a day to stay healthy. However, a new study published in Nature and Climate Change warned that they may soon find their food gone because most of the bamboo in Qinling Mountains might disappear by the end of the century as a result of rising temperature worldwide.

A team made up of researchers from Michigan State University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences has studied the effects of climate change on the bamboo in Qinling Mountains. They have found that bamboo is very sensitive to climate changes. “80% to 100% of the bamboo would be gone if the average temperature increases 3.5 degrees worldwide by the end of the century.” said Liu Jianguo, one of the reports’ authors. He added, “This is how much the temperature would rise by 2100 even if all countries will keep their promises in the Paris Agreement. But you know what is happening around the world.”

In recent years, China has been trying its best to protect the endangered pandas by setting up more and bigger natural reserves. “But it is far from being enough and the endangered pandas need cooperation from the rest of the world, because their future is not just in the hands of the Chinese,” said Shirley Martin from World Wildlife Fund.

The Qinling Mountains are home to about 360 pandas. That is about a quarter of the China’s wild panda population. In addition, about 435 are living in research centers and zoos in China.

Every winter, huge crowds come to the parking lots of big box stores. Not crazy shoppers... but crows (乌鸦)

“Sometimes there’re 4,010,00 even 20,000 birds,” says Andrea Townsend, a behavioral ecologist at Hamilton College.” They’re really conspicuous. What they like are urban areas, so you’ll see them in trees, on rooftops, certainly, in well-lit parking lots. They’re their favorite places.”

Crows are known as “partial migrants (候鸟)”. Every year, some members of the population migrate between breeding (繁殖) grounds and overwintering grounds. But others just stay put. So Townsend and her colleagues wanted to know if that urge to migrate was something individual crows can turn on and off. With no previous studies to refer to, they caught 18 crows from overwintering spots to find out. They fitted the birds with little backpack satellite devices after collecting blood and feather samples, keeping recording where they went during winter for years.

Overall, three quarters of the birds migrated, an average of 300 miles. And more importantly, if they migrated once, they did it every year—suggesting traveling is not a habit they switch on and off. The researchers also found migrating crows returned faithfully to the same breeding grounds every year—but were more flexible on where to overwinter, which could be a good thing.

“Birds with flexible strategies can change their behavior when the environment changes, while other birds are more locked into their overwintering sites. They may not be able to adjust so quickly or easily to changing environmental conditions.” Townsend also wanted to know how migration is connected with their mental ability and whether it’s a mental trade-off for the birds—since migrants have to remember all location data.

“Maybe they’re not as good at solving problems as a resident bird that doesn’t have to invest so much in that long-term memory.” Then again, with all that time on the wing, migrants simply may not have as much free time to think hard about problems.

A cat whisperer is a person who can talk and communicate with cats. Talking to a cat means understanding the spoken and unspoken words of a cat. He understands the cat's physical and verbal communication.   【小题1】

You can also become a cat whisperer if you learn to understand the body language of your cat. 【小题2】   If a cat opens her eyes wide and looks right at you, she is careful and ready to listen to you. When the eyes are half closed, it may mean she is a sleepy cat or she may want you to know, "I trust you and everything around me; I'm not in danger.” When the cat stares at you, it means she wants you to stay away and does not wish to be interrupted. 【小题3】   cats are complex animals that are actually clever. Each and every cat is different and the owner will quickly learn to understand the body language of his/her cat.

【小题4】   For example, if you are petting your cat and you see her wagging her tail, it means that she is happy and loves to be petted. But if suddenly you get a bite, it means that she wants you to stop petting her at once.

Unlike dogs, who are considered humans' good friends, cats are not good at showing their emotions. 【小题5】 With a little understanding and patience, you will also become a good cat whisperer.