Student learning objectives

• Define “gut microbiome”
• Explain foregut and hindgut fermentation and how this would help pandas
• Discuss how evolutionary forces might lead to a mismatch in diet and microbiome
• Practice identifying what background information is needed
• Research attempts to alter gut microbiome in other species
• Practice developing scientific proposals

Lesson

Lets start by watching this video:

Here is an explanation of why you can’t eat grass:

You are now a researcher in charge of saving pandas and need to figure out why they eat bamboo when they can’t really digest it.

Develop a theory on how and why the panda gut microbiome has evolved this way.

• what forces might have pushed pandas away from their natural diet? or toward bamboo?
• could the normal bear microbiome provide an advantage that keeps it in place?
• how do other plant eaters develop the ability to digest cellulose?
• have other plant eaters evolved from plant eaters or have any evolved from meat eaters?

How could you test your theory?

Fix the poor panda! What could you try to fix their biome or the bamboo? Is there another animal model that might help? Any treatments for lost microbiomes? Develop a scientific proposal to see if your plan works.