Holy $@#%!

[Akashic Soldier]

Bears have a sense of smell 6 times more sensitive than a Blood Hound!

I realize this isnt a Rifts topic but I just found out and had to tell someone.

[taalismn]

Bears have a sense of smell 6 times more sensitive than a Blood Hound!

I realize this isnt a Rifts topic but I just found out and had to tell someone.

Time to update Lone Star Bears, then.

[Akashic Soldier]

Bears have a sense of smell 6 times more sensitive than a Blood Hound!

I realize this isnt a Rifts topic but I just found out and had to tell someone.

Time to update Lone Star Bears, then.

This has blown my mind knowing how well Bloodhounds can smell!

[llywelyn]

Does this mean we can finally stat out some Psi-Pandas for the CS?

[Akashic Soldier]

Does this mean we can finally stat out some Psi-Pandas for the CS?

I doubt they have Panda DNA considering how rare they are. Besides why bother when they have Grizzly DNA.

A Dogboy Squad with geneticly enhanced and trained Grizzly tracking "hounds."

[llywelyn]

In any case, if you were looking for other insane animals to mutate into monsters to overrun the earth, the Turritopsis nutricula is biologically immortal: it can go back and forth between sexual maturity (mom) and immaturity (virgin preteen) and remain alive until something else kills it or it runs out of food. Water bears can lose 99% of their bodies' water; survive temperatures from −459° to +300°, pressure in excess of 6000 atm, and radiation levels of 6000 Gy (humans manage about 6); and last at least a decade without water. The pompey worm survives near underwater vents with its tail regularly at 175° while its head is around 70° thanks to bacteria that coat the mucus secreted by its skin; and of course honey badger don't care.

[llywelyn]

Does this mean we can finally stat out some Psi-Pandas for the CS?

I doubt they have Panda DNA considering how rare they are. Besides why bother when they have Grizzly DNA.

A Dogboy Squad with geneticly enhanced and trained Grizzly tracking "hounds."

Just the opposite. Pandas are so cute and hard to breed that I imagine any pre-Cataclysmic genetic facility worth its salt would have tubs of panda DNA.

[taalismn]

Does this mean we can finally stat out some Psi-Pandas for the CS?

I doubt they have Panda DNA considering how rare they are. Besides why bother when they have Grizzly DNA.

A Dogboy Squad with geneticly enhanced and trained Grizzly tracking "hounds."

Just the opposite. Pandas are so cute and hard to breed that I imagine any pre-Cataclysmic genetic facility worth its salt would have tubs of panda DNA.

Desmond Bradford: "Damn it, I want KODIAK genes, but all we keep finding is %^$&* PANDA DNA!!!!"

[Zer0 Kay]

Really, REALLY? Are you guys serious? Pandas aren't bears! They're people... wrong show sorry. But they still aren't bears.

[Shawn Merrow]

Really, REALLY? Are you guys serious? Pandas aren't bears! They're people... wrong show sorry. But they still aren't bears.

After some genetic studies they were reclassified as bears.

Giant Panda

[TechnoGothic]

I want to see CS Short Face Bears !!!
We have bones with dna. And the Short Face Bear's sense of smell was even better than the other bears...

[Looonatic]

Am I the only one that gets a kick out of it when some drunken idiot climbs into a Panda enclosure to give it a hug and it rips his face off?

[Akashic Soldier]

Am I the only one that gets a kick out of it when some drunken idiot climbs into a Panda enclosure to give it a hug and it rips his face off?

I didn't want to bring up the Actually it is a bear thing.

[Misfit KotLD]

Does this mean we can finally stat out some Psi-Pandas for the CS?

I doubt they have Panda DNA considering how rare they are. Besides why bother when they have Grizzly DNA.

A Dogboy Squad with geneticly enhanced and trained Grizzly tracking "hounds."

If you're going to be a bear, be a grizzly!

[TechnoGothic]

or a Short Faced Bear aka CAVE BEAR !!!

[Grell]

Does this mean we can finally stat out some Psi-Pandas for the CS?

I doubt they have Panda DNA considering how rare they are. Besides why bother when they have Grizzly DNA.

A Dogboy Squad with geneticly enhanced and trained Grizzly tracking "hounds."

Just the opposite. Pandas are so cute and hard to breed that I imagine any pre-Cataclysmic genetic facility worth its salt would have tubs of panda DNA.

Am I the only one that vomits a little at the idea of "tubs of panda DNA"?

[FreelancerMar]

I am a little confused. What actually is the difference between a Grizzly and a Kodiak bear?????

I vote go with a Polar Bear.

[Zer0 Kay]

Really, REALLY? Are you guys serious? Pandas aren't bears! They're people... wrong show sorry. But they still aren't bears.

After some genetic studies they were reclassified as bears.

Giant Panda

When the heck was that official? In '85 or in '04?... must have been in '04 because they were still calling them raccoons in '92.

[Zer0 Kay]

Am I the only one that gets a kick out of it when some drunken idiot climbs into a Panda enclosure to give it a hug and it rips his face off?

It is better when you have idiots jumping a high enclosure to check out Binky the polar bear.

[gaaahhhh]

Sabretooth Tiger. Because tigers are awesome. That is all.

[gaaahhhh]

Really, REALLY? Are you guys serious? Pandas aren't bears! They're people... wrong show sorry. But they still aren't bears.

After some genetic studies they were reclassified as bears.

Giant Panda

When the heck was that official? In '85 or in '04?... must have been in '04 because they were still calling them raccoons in '92.

Red pandas are related to raccoons. Regular pandas are bears.

[Zer0 Kay]

I am a little confused. What actually is the difference between a Grizzly and a Kodiak bear?????

I vote go with a Polar Bear.

Region and diet.

The Kodiak is a Brown Bear like the Grizzlys but they are only found on the Kodiak archipeligo, AK.
Stats.
Grizzly:
Most adult female grizzlies weigh 130–200 kilograms (290–440 lb), while adult males weigh on average 180–360 kilograms (400–790 lb). The average total length in this subspecies is 198 centimetres (6.50 ft), with an average shoulder height of 102 centimetres (3.35 ft) and hindfoot length of 28 centimetres (11 in).[4] Newborn bears may weigh less than 500 grams (1 lb). In the Yukon River area, mature female grizzlies can weigh as little as 100 kilograms (220 lb). On the other hand, an occasional huge male grizzly has been recorded which greatly exceeds ordinary size, with weights reported up to 680 kilograms (1,500 lb).
Kodiak:
Size range for females is from 225 kg (500 lbs) to 315 kg (700 lbs) and for males 360 kg (800 lbs) to 635 kg (1400 lbs). Mature males average 480–533 kg (1,058–1,175 lb) over the course of the year, and can weigh up to 680 kg (1500 lbs) at peak times.
An adult male Kodiak bear stands up to 1.5 m (5 ft) tall at the shoulder when it is standing on all four legs. When standing fully upright on its hind legs, a large male could reach a height of 3 m (10 ft)
The largest Kodiak bear on record grew in captivity and died in the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in December 1955, weighing 757 kg (1670 lb).
Polar Bear
The polar bear is the largest terrestrial carnivore, being more than twice as big as the Siberian tiger. It shares this title with the Kodiak Bear. Adult males weigh 350–680 kg (770–1500 lbs) and measure 2.4–3 m (7.9–9.8 ft) in length. Adult females are roughly half the size of males and normally weigh 150–250 kg (330–550 lb), measuring 1.8–2.4 metres (5.9–7.9 ft) in length.
The shoulder height of the polar bear is 130–160 cm (4.25-5.25 ft).
The largest polar bear on record, reportedly weighing 1,002 kg (2,210 lb), was a male shot at Kotzebue Sound in northwestern Alaska in 1960.

The Kodiak has a shorter snout than the Polar Bear and wider skull... IIRC the larger muscle anchoring area and the greater leverage applied to a smaller muzzle area makes the Kodiak's bite stronger per inch. The Polar Bear's paws are larger though to disperse weight over snow and increase surface area in water.

[Zer0 Kay]

Really, REALLY? Are you guys serious? Pandas aren't bears! They're people... wrong show sorry. But they still aren't bears.

After some genetic studies they were reclassified as bears.

Giant Panda

When the heck was that official? In '85 or in '04?... must have been in '04 because they were still calling them raccoons in '92.

Red pandas are related to raccoons. Regular pandas are bears.

Nope...

It is not a bear, nor closely related to the giant panda, nor a raccoon, nor a lineage of uncertain affinities. Rather it is a basal lineage of musteloid, with a long history of independence from its closest relatives (skunks, raccoons, and otters/weasels/badgers).

Red pandas are in their own family and are less distant from ursine as they are from raccoons.
Red Pandas= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Ailuridae/Ailurus/Ailurus fulgens
Raccoons= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Procyonidae/Procyon/Procyon lotor
Giant Panda= Caniformia/Ursidae/Ailuropoda/ Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Remember this is AS different from because the raccoons and red panda obviously share the musteloidea simularities while the Giant Panda does not.

So to get to Racoons you have to go 3 up to Musteloidea and 3 down to Procyon lotor
and to get to Giant Panda it is 4 up to Caniformia and 3 down to Ailuropoda melanoleuca but I just said to Ursine so 4 up and 1 down to Ursidae. But if I'm doing that I could also claim that they're closer to the canids (also 4 up 1 down) than the raccoon but more distant to our loving companions Canis lupus familiaris (which is 4 up 4 down)

So... yeah, I'm tired and I think this entire thing was pretty pointless... but the red panda is a DISTANT relative of the Giant Panda it is more closely related to the Raccoon... because it doesn't work up and down like all the balogne above.

[llywelyn]

Red pandas are related to raccoons. Regular pandas are bears.

Nope...

Yep.

Of course, it's not like the pandas aren't related to raccoons. Or octopodes. Or bacteria. It's related to all of them. It's just a matter of how far back you go.

Red pandas are in their own family and are less distant from ursine as they are from raccoons.
Red Pandas= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Ailuridae/Ailurus/Ailurus fulgens
Raccoons= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Procyonidae/Procyon/Procyon lotor
Giant Panda= Caniformia/Ursidae/Ailuropoda/ Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Thus, more closely related (!= equal) to raccoons.

You got tripped up by thinking that going down matters. Relation is to the common ancestor represented by the clade is the important bit, and the red pandas and raccoons' ancestor diverged more recently than the common ancestor to the red and giant pandas.

Also it's not
::::Red Pandas= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Ailuridae/Ailurus/Ailurus fulgens
::::Raccoons= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Procyonidae/Procyon/Procyon lotor
::::Giant Panda= Caniformia/Ursidae/Ailuropoda/Ailuropoda melanoleuca

It's
::::Red Pandas= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Ailuridae/Ailurus/Ailurus fulgens
::::Raccoons= Caniformia/Musteloidea/Procyonidae/Procyon/Procyon lotor
::::Giant Panda= Caniformia/---/Ursidae/Ailuropoda/Ailuropoda melanoleuca
since musteloidea is a superfamily.

Somewhat right since the red pandas aren't really part of the proper raccoon family and have their own thing going on off to the side instead, but OP's basic idea was fine.

[azazel1024]

Yeah Polar bears are the reason why if I was running around Nothern Alaska or the Polar regions of Canada I would DEFFINITELY buy/rent a gun. Minimum .30-06 if not trying to find a .380 lapua.

Most bears will want to leave you alone unless you slathered yourself in Salmon. Polar bears WANT to eat you.

[llywelyn]

Yeah Polar bears are the reason why if I was running around Nothern Alaska or the Polar regions of Canada I would DEFFINITELY buy/rent a gun. Minimum .30-06 if not trying to find a .380 lapua.

Most bears will want to leave you alone unless you slathered yourself in Salmon. Polar bears WANT to eat you.

Norway REQUIRES one (forget if they specify) if you go wandering around on Svalbard anywhere apart from town.

[TechnoGothic]

All bears want to eat you if given the chance to be honest.
Just look at the BearMan a few years back now...killed and eaten by grizzlies.

[azazel1024]

He was also a stupid F*&%.

Most bears don't want a whole lot to do with you. However, if you stick your nose in their business, **** them off, scare them, etc...they have no worries about ripping your face off.

Most people don't want to kill you either...but you get another person in the right frame of mind, and damn skippy they'll turn your butt in to their seat cushion.

Lesson #1, don't mess with something bigger than you, stronger than you and with claws.