10+ Amazing Facts you should know about Giant Pandas, Part 2

There are many things that came as a genuine surprise to me when I learn more about giant panda bears. I bet you didn’t know most of these cool panda facts- even panda lovers will be surprised! Let’s explore more interesting panda bear facts for the kids and adults.

Panda Fact 7. How long has the giant panda been on Earth?

The ancestor of today's the giant panda, is called Ailuropoda microta. And the latest research shows that the oldest known ancestor of the giant panda lineage lived about 11.6 million years ago in what is now Spain.

The formal scientific description of the species, published in 1870s. Illustration: H Milne-Edwards and A Milne-Edwards.

Panda Fact 8. Who introduced the giant pandas to the western world?

Giant pandas were unknown outside China until 1869, when it was discovered by a French missionary called Père Armand David. The first specimen he met was sent to the Natural History Museum of Paris, France.

Father Armand David dressed as a civil servant during the Qing Dynasty, 1872 (Credit: panda.fr)

The first specimen in National Museum of Natural History (Credit: Jérôme POUILLE)

Panda Fact 9. Who took the the first live giant panda outside China?

In 1937, an American fashion designer Ruth Harkness took a live panda cub from China to USA. Then Chicago's zoo acquired the cub the following year.

The cub was called Su Lin, which translates to "a little bit of something very cute". It launched the present-day panda mania, and Su Lin attracted more visitors than any other animal ever. Unfortunately, Su Lin died a year later.

Mrs W. H. Harkness brought a new baby panda Mei Mei to go to Chicago Zoo, alongside 1 year old panda Su Lin

Panda Fact 10. Are all the giant pandas black and white?

Giant pandas aren't always black and white. Qi Zai, the world's only brown and white panda living in captivity, is rare indeed.

Qi Zai has been a father in 2017 (Credit: The Aardvark)

Panda Fact 11. Do giant pandas hibernate like other bears?

Giant Pandas don't hibernate, and they stay awake all winter and look for food. While bamboo can't provide enough energy, so they don't have enough body fat for foodless months.

Panda feeding on bamboo in winter (Credit Katherine Feng)

Panda Fact 12. Who are the giant pandas’ enemies?

The adult giant pandas have almost no natural enemies other than human. Human activities such as agriculture, logging, and infrastructure development caused fragmentation of their natural habitat, which prevent them roaming and mingling with other giant pandas.

If panda mom isn’t there, snow leopards, wild dogs, jackals, and yellow-throated martens may prey on panda cubs and juveniles.

Panda enemies (Credit: abzerit/ames Weis/srichinmoy/Thai National Parks)

More interesting & fun facts about panda bear for kids and adults to be continued...

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10+ Amazing Facts you should know about Giant Pandas, Part 1

10+ Amazing Facts you should know about Giant Pandas, Part 3