We all remember, or have been told,
how awkward going through our teenage years can be.
And just like in the movie "Turning Red",
it can get way too emotional.
And if you haven't watched the film yet, here's a warning.
There are spoilers ahead.
In the movie, the main character has a hereditary curse
that transforms her into a red panda
when she gets too emotional.
If you've seen Turning Red,
you know that red pandas are native to China,
and other countries like Bhutan, Burma and India
also have them.
And like in the movie, they are adorable.
But maybe not as big.
The real-life red pandas
are about the size of a domestic cat
and weigh 3 to 5 kg (5 to 11 lb).
And they look more like raccoons.
If you haven't guessed it already,
red pandas aren't related to their giant counterparts.
Red pandas are so special
scientists classified them in their own unique
family named Ailuridae.
But what real-life traits do red pandas have
that we can see in the movie?
Like a lazy teenager snoozing in bed,
red pandas are expert sleepers.
They live high up in cold, mountainous regions
like the Himalayas,
so they curl up in trees and use their big,
bushy tails to keep warm.
They usually spend more than half the day sleeping.
And the rest of the time, they're eating.
Their food of choice? Bamboo.
About 95% of it is the green stuff.
But unlike giant pandas, the red ones are very picky.
They will only eat the most nutritious
and tender bamboo leaves and shoots.
And why not?
They can be a bit more adventurous and eat fruits,
insects and grubs.
Sometimes, they have killed and eaten birds
and small mammals.
And they have good reason to do it.
Bamboo isn't exactly nutritious,
so red pandas need to eat 20% to 30% of their
body weight every day.
To help save their energy,
they can go into a deep sleep known as torpor.
It's a sort of hibernation when their metabolisms,
core temperatures and respiration rates are lower.
In "Turning Red",
Mei grows into a red panda when she experiences
strong emotions.
While this is not as spectacular,
real red pandas stand on their hind legs
with extended claws to look more threatening.
They look a lot more huggable
than threatening, if you ask me.
Who's so cute? You are, you - Okay, moving on.
While Mei can still speak English
in her transformed state,
her real-life counterparts communicate
in completely different ways.
Snorts, squeals and quacks are some of the noises
red pandas use.
They can also use nonverbal cues like arching their tails
and bobbing their heads.
Red pandas also scent mark their territory and for mating.
They have a scent gland at the base of their tail
that they rub on a surface with a little wiggle dance.
It shares information about their sex and fertility.
They also have glands on their paws
to help mark their territory.
It's fun to see the similarities between the animated
red pandas and real-life ones.
But it's even more important that the film has increased
our awareness of them.
Sadly, red pandas are endangered.
The wild population has declined by 50%
in the last 20 years.
Their biggest threat is habitat loss due to deforestation.
And they're not the only animal
that needs our protection.
Check out our episode on rhinos
and why transporting them upside-down
might be the best way to move them.
They sleep a lot and like to eat bamboo.
That's what red pandas do.
And that's what makes them Crazy Creatures.