Giant Pandas - Cute, Adorable, Endangered

Here you'll see why everyone loves Giant Pandas

Here you'll find information, facts, photos and videos about Giant Pandas. There are also informational links to organizations and sanctuaries who's mission is to save them. You can't look at these pictures and videos without smiling at these adorable bears.

For me, they almost don't look real but more like a big stuffed animal. And, they obviously don't know that they are critically endangered. Maybe ignorance is bliss. ~Sigh~

So, read about these wonderful Giant Pandas and really look at the pictures and videos. Smile, be happy and maybe even figure out what you can do to help save them for our children's children's children.

Scientific classification Of Giant Panda

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Ursidae
Genus: Ailuropoda
Species: A. melanoleuca

Binomial name: Ailuropoda melanoleuca
(David, 1869)

From Wikipedia

Conservation Status

Endangered (IUCN 3.1)

From Wikipedia

Where Giant Panda Are Found

Giant Pandas are found in several mountain ranges in China. Specifically, in the Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. They used to be found in the lowlands, however due to habitat destruction from farming and the clearing of forest of bamboo (their main source of food), they are now found only higher up.

What Giant Pandas Eat

Although Giant Pandas are classified as carnivore, their diets are herbivorous as they eat bamboo (about 99%) but supplement their diet with whatever else is available such as bananas, oranges, leaves from shrubs, eggs and honey.

Due to the limited nutrition derived from bamboo, they eat lots of it -- as much as 14 kilos per day. They will also eat fish and eggs and meat when available.

In captivity, Giant Pandas are fed bamboo but they also get sweet potatoes, carrots, applies and sugar cane.

Giant Panda's Breeding and Birth

Between the ages of 4 and 8 years old, Panda become sexually mature. They mate 1 time per year and usually give birth to 1 or 2 cubs. The cubs are quite helpless weighing in at only 3 to 4-1/2 ounces. They are also born blind and furless.

If 2 cubs are born in the wild, the mother will only take care of the strongest cub and leaves the 2nd cub to die. The remaining cub will stay with the mother for about 2 years. Like polar bears, the father has no part in raising the cub.

Although the cub is born hairless, fur begins to appear a month after birth along with black spots where the black fur will grow in. The cubs begins to crawl at 3 to 4 months old.

Giant Panda's Growth - the first 3 months of life

During the first 3 months of life, the following occurs:

Eyes open.
Fur grows in
Black marking have developed.
Teeth have broken through gums.
They are scooting around but not walking yet.

Behavior of the Giant Panda

Small groups of Giant Pandas share a large territory but are solitary bears who have their own defined territory. They are good climbers and create dens in trees and rock crevices. They do not hibernate and do not create permanent dens.

These cute bears communicate with each other vocally and through scent markings.

A Giant Panda Slide Show

These images were all taken by ucumari, who is my favorite bear photographer on Flickr.

curated content from Flickr

Symbol of China

Giant Panda are on stamps and coins

Lucky for Giant Pandas, the Chinese have NOT found any medicinal value in Panda body parts, unlike the Asiatic Bear and other animals. Although they are hunted for their fur and during famine, to eat.

In fact, the Chinese people have quite a love relationship with these cute bears. They are depicted as cute and cuddly and people swarm to the zoos to see them, especially when a new cub is born.

The Giant Panda's likeness is depicted on many stamps and coins.

Who, Me?

Panda Diplomacy

China offers pandas as gifts to other countries

The Chinese used to give Giant Pandas as gifts to other countries. In 1984, however, instead of using pandas as agents of diplomacy, the China instead offered pandas to other nations on 10-year loans.

The fee of these "loans" were up to US$ 1,000,000 per year and came with a provision that any cubs born during the loan were the property of the People's Republic of China.

A WWF lawsuit in 1998 brought about a change in the U.S. Now, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service only allows a U.S. zoo to import a panda IF the zoo can ensure that China will put more than half of its loan fee into conservation efforts for wild pandas and their habitat. Way to go WWF!

(photo of Hu Jintao during a defense meeting at the Pentagon in May, 2002)

Zhen Zhen - The panda cub at the San Diego Zoo

Check out this cute video of a panda cub

Below is a video of the 1st year of life of Zhen Zhen, the little cub born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007.

Zhen Zhen is charming and keeps guests entertained with her antics and sense of curiosity. She can almost make you forget how endangered Giant Pandas are. Pandas are still with us because of the panda conservation effort that is happening world-wide.

PBS TV has put together this hour-long documentary about her first year. It also discusses the conservation effort that allowed her to be born and thrive.

To see when the documentary will playing on your tv, check online at Local PBS TV Schedule.

Now, off you go, check out Zhen Zhen in the video below.

Panda Tales starring Zhen Zhen

Video of panda cub

PANDA TALES | PBS

Runtime: 179
190920 views
216 Comments:

curated content from YouTube

Wonderful Videos Of Giant Panda

Organizations Saving Giant Panda And Other Bears

What organizations are doing to save giant pandas

Here are some great organizations working to save Giant Pandas. Vote for your favorite(s) and add it if you don't see it.

Giant Pandas - Cute, Adorable, Endangered

Here you'll see why everyone loves Giant Pandas

Contents at a Glance

Contents at a Glance

Scientific classification Of Giant Panda

Conservation Status

Where Giant Panda Are Found

What Giant Pandas Eat

Giant Panda's Breeding and Birth

Giant Panda's Growth - the first 3 months of life

Behavior of the Giant Panda

A Giant Panda Slide Show

Symbol of China

Giant Panda are on stamps and coins

Panda Diplomacy

China offers pandas as gifts to other countries

Zhen Zhen - The panda cub at the San Diego Zoo

Check out this cute video of a panda cub

Panda Tales starring Zhen Zhen

Video of panda cub

PANDA TALES | PBS

Wonderful Videos Of Giant Panda

More fun videos of panda and panda cubs

Organizations Saving Giant Panda And Other Bears

What organizations are doing to save giant pandas

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Panda Photo Caption Contest

What is this little panda thinking?

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Please don't hurt me.

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No I didn' take Your Bamboo, What how did that get there.

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Honest, it wasn't me.

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Don't look at me like that, you're scaring me.

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Whoa Big Boy!

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I'm just the messenger.

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who me i didn't do that....fine maybe i did its not that bad....DON'T look at me I'm hungry

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I come in peace, bringing bamboo.

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Patti Cake ,Patti Cake, bakers man

FREE Giant Panda Kit

Make A Paper Giant Panda

Wonderful Books On Pandas

Get books on pandas right here!

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Project Panda Ware on Zazzle

Fun Panda Books For Kids

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