FAQ of Giant Panda

When did foreigners begin to know the giant pandas? 

In 1862~1874 , a French missionary called Armand David lived in China. In the spring of 1869, he passed a family named Lee, and a black and white animal skin hung on the wall caught his attention. The owner said that the local people call this animal "white bear", "Flower Bear" or "bamboo bear". It was a very docile and generally animal that did not hurt people. After hearing that,David was so excited. He thought this animal would be an interesting new specie in science. And this discovery would definitely fill the gap in animal research in the world. So he hired 20 local hunters to launch his search. It was a great pity that the hunters killed the first little white bear to bring them in.

On May 4, 1869, David caught a "bamboo bear" named "black and white bear". After a period of careful feeding, David decided to bring this cute black and white bear back to his Country France. However, this cute bear had not been able to move to Chengdu due to the changes of climate and the long mountain road.David was so sad and he made a specimen of this cute bear which was sent to the National Museum in Paris. That was how the first giant panda specimen came into being.


How did the giant panda's name come from?

National Museum had made a exhibition for the bear skin, and the director Miller Edwards, found it was not bear class as David identified after a careful study about the fur and bone of the "black and white bear" . In 1870, Edwards published an survey report, saying, "the giant panda is really similar to the bear for its appearance, but its skeletal features and the tooth system are very distinct from the latter, similar to the raccoons." This must be a new genus. he named it "giant panda".

So why is the giant panda named "Panda"? There are two kinds of statements as I know. The name of missionary David is abbreviated as P.A.David, Panda is just homophonic. Another claim is that in the Baoxing area where giant pandas are found, most of the local people can speak Nepalese. In Nepalese, the giant panda is known as "nigalya-ponya", which means "a bear of eating bamboo ".

Does panda eat only bamboo and don't eat any meat？

I have a question for you guys,does panda eat only bamboo ? well I don’t think so.
Actually,Pandas do eat meat, don't you believe it? they are a member of the carnivores, but they had to changed into vegetarians under the pressure of survival.

Pan Wenshi, the authority of the giant panda, wrote the book "the panda's story" according to years of field experience.in his book,he wrote that giant pandas are very fond of eating meat. They do not refuse to eat birds and eggs,and they also like to eat bamboo mice when they eat bamboos. What funny is that when other carnivorous animals are having their meal,the giant panda is Squatting around beside and waiting to eat the remains of a meal, or sometimes sneaking the food buried by other animals.

What is Panda drunk？

Giant pandas also have the habit of drinking, so their homes are always near the clear springs. Even in the severe winter, the spring water is covered by thin ice or blocked by gravel, the panda will dig a shallow puddle by a claw for drinking. If  there are water sources nearby, the giant pandas will go out of a clear drinking path day after day. They will drink plenty of water when the water sources are found , or sometimes the giant pandas just simply lie down on a stream and hesitate to leave，just like a drunken man.

This phenomenon has been said when the giant panda was drinking water at the side of the pool, it saw a image which looks like himself, but the giant panda didn't know it was its own reflection, the giant panda was curious about it and tried to figure it out. panda used his forehand to catch the reflection in the water.,and the reflection was flickering.then the giant panda scrambled to drink with the reflection and forgot that it had drunk too much to walk around the pool.Many people again call this phenomenon "panda plays with water". In fact ,It is pathology that leads to panda’s mouth parched and tongue scorched.

 In addition, they also have the ability to Wade and swim, and in Qingchuan, Sichuan, she found Yao Du crossing the White River to the other side of the river, and found in Wolong that she crossed the rushing strip of water from the current. They are also good at climbing trees . Climbing tree is usually a way of approaching marriage, or avoiding danger. Sometimes the panda will go down to the valley, go into villages or houses in the countryside,Sometimes they are friendly with domestic animals, such as sheep, pigs, and so on.

we are happy to update more Q and A soon