PANDAS
Panda Facts
Giant Pandas
Giant pandas are black and white bears that live in temperate-zone bamboo
forests in central China. Among the best recognized but rarest animals in the
world, they have come to symbolize endangered species and conservation efforts.
Scientific Classification
(Genus and Species, Family, Order): Ailuropoda melanoleuca, Ursidae,
Carnivora.
Geographic Distribution
Giant pandas live in a few mountain ranges in central China’s Sichuan,
Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. They once lived in lowland areas, but farming,
forest clearing, and other development now restrict giant pandas to the
mountains.
Habitat
Giant pandas live in broadleaf and coniferous forests with a dense understory
of bamboo, at elevations between 5,000 and 10,000 feet. Torrential rains or
dense mist throughout the year characterizes these forests, often shrouded in
heavy clouds.
Physical Description
A giant panda is bear-like in shape. It has black fur on ears, eye patches,
muzzle, legs, and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Although
scientists do not know why these unusual bears are black and white, some
speculate that the bold coloring provides effective camouflage into their
shade-dappled snowy and rocky surroundings. The panda's thick, wooly coat keeps
it warm in the cool forests of its habitat. Giant pandas have large molar teeth
and strong jaw muscles for crushing tough bamboo. Many people find these
chunky, lumbering animals to be cute, but giant pandas can be as dangerous as
any other bear.
Size
About the size of an American black bear, giant pandas stand between two and
three feet tall at the shoulder (on all four legs), and reach four to six feet
long. Males are larger than females, weighing up to 250 pounds in the wild.
Females rarely reach 220 pounds.
Status
The giant panda is listed as endangered in the World Conservation Union's
(IUCN's) Red List of Threatened Animals. It is one of the most critically
endangered species in the world. There are about 1,000 left in the wild. About
140 pandas live in zoos and breeding centers around the world, mostly in China.
Life Span
Scientists are not sure how long giant pandas live in the wild, but they are
sure it is shorter than lifespans in zoos. Chinese scientists have reported zoo
pandas as old as 35.
Diet
A wild giant panda’s diet is almost exclusively (99 percent) bamboo. The
balance consists of other grasses and occasional small rodents or musk deer
fawns. In zoos, giant pandas eat bamboo, sugar cane, rice gruel, a special
high-fiber biscuit, carrots, apples, and sweet potatoes.
Social Structure
Adult giant pandas are generally solitary, but they do communicate
periodically through scent marks, calls, and occasional meetings. Offspring
stay with their mothers from one and a half to three years.
Giant Pandas
Giant pandas are black and white bears that live in temperate-zone bamboo
forests in central China. Among the best recognized but rarest animals in the
world, they have come to symbolize endangered species and conservation efforts.
Scientific Classification
(Genus and Species, Family, Order): Ailuropoda melanoleuca, Ursidae,
Carnivora.
Geographic Distribution
Giant pandas live in a few mountain ranges in central China’s Sichuan,
Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. They once lived in lowland areas, but farming,
forest clearing, and other development now restrict giant pandas to the
mountains.
Habitat
Giant pandas live in broadleaf and coniferous forests with a dense understory
of bamboo, at elevations between 5,000 and 10,000 feet. Torrential rains or
dense mist throughout the year characterizes these forests, often shrouded in
heavy clouds.
Physical Description
A giant panda is bear-like in shape. It has black fur on ears, eye patches,
muzzle, legs, and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Although
scientists do not know why these unusual bears are black and white, some
speculate that the bold coloring provides effective camouflage into their
shade-dappled snowy and rocky surroundings. The panda's thick, wooly coat keeps
it warm in the cool forests of its habitat. Giant pandas have large molar teeth
and strong jaw muscles for crushing tough bamboo. Many people find these
chunky, lumbering animals to be cute, but giant pandas can be as dangerous as
any other bear.
Size
About the size of an American black bear, giant pandas stand between two and
three feet tall at the shoulder (on all four legs), and reach four to six feet
long. Males are larger than females, weighing up to 250 pounds in the wild.
Females rarely reach 220 pounds.
Status
The giant panda is listed as endangered in the World Conservation Union's
(IUCN's) Red List of Threatened Animals. It is one of the most critically
endangered species in the world. There are about 1,000 left in the wild. About
140 pandas live in zoos and breeding centers around the world, mostly in China.
Life Span
Scientists are not sure how long giant pandas live in the wild, but they are
sure it is shorter than lifespans in zoos. Chinese scientists have reported zoo
pandas as old as 35.
Diet
A wild giant panda’s diet is almost exclusively (99 percent) bamboo. The
balance consists of other grasses and occasional small rodents or musk deer
fawns. In zoos, giant pandas eat bamboo, sugar cane, rice gruel, a special
high-fiber biscuit, carrots, apples, and sweet potatoes.
Social Structure
Adult giant pandas are generally solitary, but they do communicate
periodically through scent marks, calls, and occasional meetings. Offspring
stay with their mothers from one and a half to three years.