Factsheet Giant Panda Facts
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Giant Panda Facts
(Ailuropoda melanoleuca)
Giant panda. John J. Mosesso
What animal is black and white and loved all over the world? If you guessed the giant panda, you’re right! The giant panda is also known as the panda bear, bamboo bear, or in
Chinese as Daxiongmao, the “large bear cat.” In fact, its scientific name means “black and white catfooted animal.”
Giant pandas are found only in the mountains of central China— in small isolated areas of the north and central portions of the
Sichuan Province, in the mountains bordering the southernmost part of
Gansu Province and in the Qinling
Mountains of the Shaanxi Province.
Giant pandas live in dense bamboo and coniferous forests at altitudes of 5,000 to 10,000 feet. The mountains are shrouded in heavy clouds with torrential rains or dense mist throughout the year.
Giant pandas have existed since the Pleistocene Era (about 600,000 years ago), when their geographic range extended throughout southern China.Fossil remains also have been found in present-day
Burma.
Giant pandas are bears with striking black and white markings.
The ears, eye patches, legs and shoulder band are black; the rest of the body is whitish. They have thick, woolly coats to insulate them from the cold. Adults are four to six feet long and may weigh up to 350 pounds—about the same size as the American black bear. However, unlike the black bear, giant pandas do not hibernate and cannot walk on their hind legs.
one or two cubs weighing 3 to 5 ounces each is born in a sheltered den. Usually only one cub survives.
The eyes open at 1 1/2 to 2 months and the cub becomes mobile at approximately three months of age. At 12 months the cub becomes totally independent. While their average life span in the wild is about 15 years, giant pandas in captivity have been known to live well into their twenties.
While bamboo stalks and roots make up about 95 percent of its diet, the giant panda also feeds on gentians, irises,
Giant Panda Facts
(Ailuropoda melanoleuca)
Giant panda. John J. Mosesso
What animal is black and white and loved all over the world? If you guessed the giant panda, you’re right! The giant panda is also known as the panda bear, bamboo bear, or in
Chinese as Daxiongmao, the “large bear cat.” In fact, its scientific name means “black and white catfooted animal.”
Giant pandas are found only in the mountains of central China— in small isolated areas of the north and central portions of the
Sichuan Province, in the mountains bordering the southernmost part of
Gansu Province and in the Qinling
Mountains of the Shaanxi Province.
Giant pandas live in dense bamboo and coniferous forests at altitudes of 5,000 to 10,000 feet. The mountains are shrouded in heavy clouds with torrential rains or dense mist throughout the year.
Giant pandas have existed since the Pleistocene Era (about 600,000 years ago), when their geographic range extended throughout southern China.Fossil remains also have been found in present-day
Burma.
Giant pandas are bears with striking black and white markings.
The ears, eye patches, legs and shoulder band are black; the rest of the body is whitish. They have thick, woolly coats to insulate them from the cold. Adults are four to six feet long and may weigh up to 350 pounds—about the same size as the American black bear. However, unlike the black bear, giant pandas do not hibernate and cannot walk on their hind legs.
one or two cubs weighing 3 to 5 ounces each is born in a sheltered den. Usually only one cub survives.
The eyes open at 1 1/2 to 2 months and the cub becomes mobile at approximately three months of age. At 12 months the cub becomes totally independent. While their average life span in the wild is about 15 years, giant pandas in captivity have been known to live well into their twenties.
While bamboo stalks and roots make up about 95 percent of its diet, the giant panda also feeds on gentians, irises,