I was at the grocery store recently looking for some handsoap. SoftSoap has this “Rainforest” line of soaps: http://www.softsoap.ca/english/brands/rainforest.shtml. This consists of 3 animals, a monkey, a parrot, and a panda.
Wait, a panda?
Let’s consult wikipedia:
The Giant Panda lives in mountainous regions, like Sichuan and Tibet.
I’m going to ask The Smithsonian Zoo:
Giant pandas … live in temperate-zone bamboo forests in central China.
Let’s see what the WWF says, a panda IS their mascot, they should know:
today giant pandas are confined to temperate forest scattered across six mountain ranges in southwestern China
So what are pandas doing in a Rainforest collection? Is this company especially stupid or is it a common misconception that pandas live in rainforests?
The rainforest has more interesting animals than any other habitat I know of, and they choose an animal that isn’t even in it!
The worst part? This is soap for kids. This teaches our kids that pandas live in rainforests.
*puts head on desk and groans*