Giant panda
Scientific name: Ailuropoda melanoleuca (David, 1869)
Overview
The giant panda, also known as the panda bear or simply panda, is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its white coat with black patches around the eyes, ears, legs and shoulders. Its body is rotund; adult individuals weigh 100 to 115 kg and are typically 1.2 to 1.9 m long. It is sexually dimorphic, with males being typically 10–20% larger than females. A thumb is visible on its forepaw, which helps in holding bamboo in place for feeding. It has large molar teeth and expanded temporal fossae to meet its dietary requirements. It can digest starch and is mostly herbivorous with a diet consisting almost entirely of bamboo and bamboo shoots.
From the Wikipedia article “Giant panda”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.2.
Size and lifespan
| Measurement | Value |
|---|---|
| Birth weight | 104 g |
| Adult weight | 117.5 kg |
Source: Wikidata, citing “Ailuropoda melanoleuca”, scientific article published on 29 December 1978.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Southern Asia.
Common names
Also known in English as Bamboo Bear, Great Panda, Panda Bear, Parti-colored Bear, White Bear.
Names in other languages (14)
- Arabic
- بندة عملاقة
- Bengali
- পান্ডা
- Chinese
- 大熊猫
- French
- panda géant
- German
- Bambusbär, Großer Panda, Riesenpanda
- Hindi
- पाण्डा
- Indonesian
- panda
- Japanese
- ジャイアントパンダ
- Persian
- پاندا
- Portuguese
- Panda-gigante
- Russian
- бамбуковый медведь, большая панда
- Spanish
- panda gigante
- Turkish
- Dev panda
- Urdu
- دیوقامت پانڈا
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, measurements, names in other languages. Q33602, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Giant panda”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Jeff Kubina, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — User:IAMTHEEGGMAN, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026