Panda Bear

Wild giant pandas are found only in southwestern China. They occupy 6 small forest fragments in the provinces of Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi. (5,400 square miles) They inhabit damp, misty forests of bamboo and conifers at high altitudes (4,000-11,500 feet). Their preferred habitat has dense stands of at least one species of bamboo (preferably more). They once lived in lowland areas, but farming, forest clearing, and other development now restrict giant pandas to the mountains.

Estimates place the number of Giant Pandas left in the wild to be around 1,000. Their striking coloration is thought to be an important signal to other pandas since they avoid contact and have poor vision. Brown-and-white pandas exist but are extremely rare.

About 110 giant pandas are in captivity, mostly in China. As China has increasing success with breeding pandas in captivity, they hope that returning them to the wild will supplement the existing wild population.