Sex differences in giant panda paw preferences during bamboo feeding.

Abstract

We examined giant panda paw use while feeding on bamboo to determine if this species exhibits manual lateralization. Video recordings of 21 captive giant pandas (15 females and six males) were used to measure two unimanual behaviors: 1) duration of grasping and manipulating bamboo culm during feeding bouts and 2) number of reaches. We did not find paw preferences at the population level but found significant sex differences in paw use. Male giant pandas used their right paw significantly more than their left paw while manipulating bamboo culm, whereas females used their left paw more for both manipulating and reaching for bamboo. Our results differ from previous studies, in which males of most placental quadrupeds have been found to favor the left forelimb more so than females. This preliminary study also suggests that task differences influence the degree of manual lateralization in the giant panda, and challenges the hypothesis that a lack of a corpus callosum leads to sex differences in marsupial forelimb biases. Considering the giant panda's distinctive behavioral ecology, morphology, and evolutionary history, this species provides a valuable model for investigating manual lateralization. We recommend further research on giant pandas, to test our preliminary findings, as well as comparative studies across other ursid species, which exhibit substantial variation in habitat and feeding ecology.