Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) Fact Sheet: Summary

Kingdon: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Ursidae

Subfamily: Ailuropodinae

Genus: Ailuropoda

Species: Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Body Length: 120–180 cm

Tail Length: 10–16 cm

Weight: males: 85–125 kg (but up to 150 kg in managed care); females: 70–100 kg

Pelage: Coarse guard hairs that repel water; thick and woolly undercoat that provides warmth. Commonly, black-and-white (but more brownish fur patches in at least one subpopulation). Contrasting colors thought to be help pandas blend in with snow and shade.

Range: 6 mountain ranges in central China (Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces)

Habitat: montane forests with dense bamboo stands; prefer old-growth forests; shelter in tree hollows, rock crevices, and caves

IUCN Status
Vulnerable (2016 assessment)

CITES Appendix
Appendix I

Population Estimates: approximately 1,040 mature individuals; approximately 1,800-2,060 individuals total

Locomotion: Can walk over rough terrain and through bamboo easily. Gait described as “rolling,” “ambling,” or “waddling." Rarely run, but will dash off if startled. Infrequently climb trees as adults, but young pandas (between 4 and 14 months old) commonly stay in a tree while mother forages.

Activity Cycle: Active day and night. Active for about 50% of the day, for a few hours at a time. Most activity involves foraging and eating, as well as resting/sleeping.

Social Groups: Generally solitary, except during breeding or raising cubs (females).

Communication: Scent mark trees, rocks, logs, stumps, etc. using gland secretions and urine. Strip bark; leave claw marks on trees; signal each other with body postures. Range of breeding and nonbreeding vocalizations, such as bleats, chirps, snorts, huffs. Tactile communication most common during breeding (adults) or between mother and cub.

Diet: 99% bamboo leaves, stems, and shoots; rarely eat other kinds of plants but may have diet flexibility. Opportunistically eat carrion and meat (eg, small rodents), crops, domestic animal feeds.

Sexual Maturity: similar for both sexes, about 5 to 7 years old

Gestation: on average, about 3 to 5.5 months; varies due to delayed embryo implantation

Litter Size: In the wild, usually 1 cub raised (mother usually gives birth to 1 or 2 cubs, very rarely 3).

Birth Weight: About 90 to 130 g; newborns particularly small but rapidly gain weight

Typical Life Expectancy:
Managed care: no AZA estimates

Feature Facts:

• Unique, thumb-like digit (sesamoid bone) for manipulating bamboo while eating
• Skull features and jaw muscles exceptionally adapted for chewing bamboo
• Do not hibernate, unlike other bears
• Have distinct winter and summer habitat areas
• Observed sliding down snowy slopes
• Unlike other bear species, females (instead of males) appear to disperse from their natal area
• Males adopt a “headstand” position to place scent marks high up to show competitive ability
• Females give distinctive chirps when ready to mate
• Cubs most underdeveloped at birth, of all bear species
• Significant role in Chinese history, culture, and folklore
• Charismatic bear whose conservation protects numerous other forest species of plants and animals in China
• Well protected from hunting/poaching by government of China
• 1987-1988: 2 pandas loaned to San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance for 200 days; visited by more than 2 million guests
• 1999: Bai Yun gives birth to Hua Mei at the San Diego Zoo; first successful use of artificial insemination outside of Chinese breeding programs
• 2021: China establishes Giant Panda National Park, complementing its 67 panda reserves
• 2024: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance welcomed Yun Chuan and Xin Bao
• San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a nearly 30-year conservation partnership with leading conservation institutions in China, together working to protect and recover giant pandas and bamboo forests
• Panda Ridge at the San Diego Zoo to open August 2024