The
panda (
Ailuropoda melanoleuca,
lit. "black and white cat-foot"), also known as the
giant panda to distinguish it from the unrelated
red panda, is a
bear native to south central
China.
It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body. Though it belongs to the order
Carnivora, the panda's diet is over 99%
bamboo.
Pandas in the wild will occasionally eat other grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of birds, rodents or carrion. In captivity, they may receive honey, eggs, fish, yams,
shrub leaves, oranges, or bananas along with specially prepared food.
The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in
Sichuan province, but also in the
Shaanxi and
Gansu provinces.
As a result of farming,
deforestation and other development, the panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_panda