The giant panda is known as one of the most adorable animals in the world for its round face, large dark circles around its eyes, chubby body, typical pigeon-toed stride, as well as paws as sharp as a scalpel. 

Scroll on to learn more about our giant furry friends!

Fossils of Ailuaractos lufengensis, the oldest panda found so far, were unearthed in Lufeng and Yuanmou of Yunnan, China, where the geological era dates back to the late Miocene era, 8 million years ago. 

In the unending competition of natural selection, many animals from the same era have gone extinct, but giant pandas are undoubtedly stronger and superior living fossils that survive today.

In March 1869, the French naturalist Father Armand David (September 7, 1826 - November 10, 1900) found traces of animals named the white bear and colorful bear by locals during a scientific expedition near Dengchigou (Muping) Church in Baoxing County, Ya'an, Sichuan. 

Aided by local hunters, he collected specimens of the white bear, a strange bear-like, black-and-white animal that he had never seen before, with much fur on the bottom of its paws. The specimens and bones were transported to France. 

Verified by Alfons Miller Edwards, a scientist at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle in France, the “black-white bear” was a new species and was later named Ailuropoda Melanoleuca. 

Compared with the wild pandas that have a life span of 18 to 20 years old, the captive population may see their lives beyond 30 years due to the remarkable feeding management and medical treatment offered in captive venues. 

The most important reason for the shrinking distribution and population of giant pandas is that their habitats are greatly declined and highly fragmented (i.e., isolated from each other). 

The reason behind this habitat loss lies in the destruction of large forests and bamboo forests caused by explosions in the human population and agricultural cultivation, and construction of roads, tourist attractions, and more.

The giant panda's diet is over 99% bamboo which consists of 12 genera and over 60 species. In addition, giant pandas in the wild will occasionally eat animal carcasses or other plants.

Captive giant pandas mainly feed on one or several kinds of bamboo that grow near mountain bases and flatlands, supplemented with concentrated feed made from grains.

The reproduction rate of giant pandas is rather low. The most peculiar feature about giant panda breeding is the fact that the newborn is quite immature, weighing only 0.1% of its mother. 

Newborn skin is pink with sparse, white hair. For weeks after birth, the panda mother will hold her cub in her arms to warm and protect it, never putting it down, grasping it in its jaws when on the move. 

While breeding the giant panda cub, the cries of the cub are a very important communication tool for the mother and the baby. The cubs will remind their mother to meet their different needs through different sounds. 

Giant pandas spend half the day eating, and most of the rest of their time sleeping. 

In the wild, the giant pandas sleep for 2h to 4h intervals between meals. Lying supine, lying on their sides, lying prone, stretching, or curling are all their preferred sleeping positions.

They are adept tree climbers and love to play. Their tree-climbing behavior usually appears when they are approaching the estrus and escaping danger or as a strategy the weak employs to avoid the strong when they encounter one another. 

Giant pandas usually are very meek. But once they enter motherhood, they can become aggressive when protecting their little and inviolable cub. 

In the wild, giant pandas usually conflict with one another during the estrous season, especially when 3 to 4 males are pursuing one estrous female at the same time. Sometimes, females and males also fight.