Giant pandas were not always native only to China – and they didn't always love bamboo.
A pair of fossilized panda teeth, originally found in northwestern Bulgaria, suggests these lovable bears once roamed across Europe where they gobbled up much softer plants than their modern cousins.The Bulgarian gnashers do not belong to a direct ancestor of today's giant pandas but to a close relative that lived approximately 6 million years ago on the eastern edge of Europe.
Judging by the material in which the fossil was found, the ancient panda likely lived in a swampy forest and feasted on vegetation. Yet its teeth were suited for tougher foods than older related species – a discovery that fits nicely with the idea that modern giant pandas"The likely competition with other species, especially carnivores and presumably other bears, explains the closer food specialization of giant pandas to vegetable food in humid forest conditions,"Giant pandas are often said to be living fossils because they have changed so very little throughout their evolutionary history.
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