Panda Scientific name:Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Panda
Scientific name:Ailuropoda melanoleuca
The giant panda, or panda, is a bear native to central-western and south western China. It is easily recognized by its large, distinctive black patches around the eyes, over the ears, and across its round body.Panda Bears, cute and adorable, are on the endangered species list. Their numbers are deceasing due to dwindling habitat and their poor reproductive capabilities, both in the wild and in captivity.
Range and habitat
The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan province, but also in the Shaanxi and Gansu provinces.Pandas live in and around mountainous slopes .
Physical characteristics
The basic fur colour of the giant panda is white with black eye patches, ears, legs, feet, chest, and shoulders. Within its natural environment ( the deep forest and, at upper elevations, snow and rock) , its mottled colouring provides camouflage. There is also speculation that its striking colour pattern may be a clear message to other pandas to stay away.
Adults measure around 1.2 to 1.8 meters (4 to 6 ft) long and around 75 centimetres (2 ft 6 in) tall at the shoulder. Males can weigh up to 150 kg .Females (generally 10–20% smaller than males)can weigh up to 125 kg.
Subspecies
There are Two subspecies of giant panda:
The nominate subspecies- Ailuropoda melanoleuca melanoleuca- consists of most extant populations of panda. These animals are principally found in Sichuan and display the typical stark black and white contrasting colours.
The Qinling Panda- Ailuropoda melanoleuca qinlingensis- is restricted to the Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi at elevations of 1300–3000 m. The typical black and white pattern of Sichuan giant pandas is replaced with a dark brown versus light brown pattern.
There are two kinds of Pandas.
The giant white and black Panda
The Red Panda (the lesser Panda)- the Red Panda is more like the Raccoon family. In physical appearance, it bears an unquestionable resemblance to the raccoon. The Red Panda is reddish brown in colour. It grows to about two feet and weighs six to twelve pounds.The Red Panda also lives in China and Tibet. In addition, it can be found in Burma, India and Nepal.
Feeding and diet
The giant panda's diet is primarily herbivorous, consisting almost exclusively of bamboo.The giant panda still has the digestive system of a carnivore, as well as carnivore-specific genes, and thus derives little energy and little protein from consumption of bamboo.  The average giant panda eats as much as 9 to 14 kg (20 to 30 pounds) of bamboo shoots a day.The giant panda has an insatiable appetite for bamboo. A typical animal eats half the day—a full 12 out of every 24 hours—and relieves itself dozens of times a day. Pandas will sometimes eat birds or rodents as well. These black-and-white bears eat primarily bamboo although they also have been known to eat other plants, fish, pika and other small rodents.
Reproduction
Giant pandas reach sexual maturity between the ages of four and eight, and may be reproductive until age 20. The mating season is between March and May.The gestation period ranges from 95 to 160 days. Cubs weigh only 90 to 130 grams, which is about 1/800 of the mother's weight.
If twins are born, usually only one survives in the wild. The mother will select the stronger of the cubs, and the weaker will die. It is thought that the mother cannot produce enough milk for two cubs since she does not store fat. The father has no part in helping raise the cub.
When the cub is first born, it is pink, blind, and toothless and cannot crawl until they reach three months of age. A giant panda cub is also extremely small[quantify], and it is difficult for the mother to protect it because of the baby's size. It nurses from its mother's breast 6 to 14 times a day for up to 30 minutes at a time.
Predatory
Human are the only predators.
Life expectancy
Its live in the wild for about 25 years.