Ursidae Atlas

Ursidae · Ailuropodinae

Giant Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

A bamboo specialist that is still a true bear.

Pandas sit on their own subfamily. A false thumb lets them grip bamboo. IUCN moved them from Endangered to Vulnerable after reserve expansion — still a narrow range.

Vulnerable — downlisted from Endangered Asia
Giant Panda
Wikimedia Commons · source
250Typical male, lb
200Typical female, lb
4–6 ftStanding height
About 20 years.Wild lifespan

Range

Where they live

Temperate montane forests of south-central China, fragmented among reserves.

SichuanShaanxiGansu

Habitat

What they use

  • Montane bamboo forest
  • Temperate broadleaf forest

Figure — diet mix

What fills the year

Bamboo
99%
Other
1%
  • Bamboo stems and leaves
  • Rare small animals or carrion

Conservation

Vulnerable

  • Wild population is still small and fragmented.
  • Corridors between reserves matter as much as headcount.

Pressures

Habitat fragmentationBamboo die-off cyclesNarrow range

Map

Range sketch and cameras

Filled shapes are schematic core-range sketches for reading the atlas, not official occupancy layers.

Field notes

Worth remembering

  • The ‘thumb’ is an enlarged radial sesamoid.
  • Cubs are tiny relative to the mother.