The giant panda is probably one of the most famous animals in the world and is used as a symbol of wildlife conservation. It is found in the wild only in China and is confined to bamboo forests. Like the koala, its diet is very limited; it feeds almost exclusively on bamboo. The giant panda has to eat a lot of bamboo to obtain sufficient nourishment. In fact, it spends 50 to 75 per cent of the day eating.

Its forepaw is specially adapted to grasp bamboo stems. It is distinctive with a thick white and black fur coat. A female panda usually has one baby. The baby looks very small in comparison to the mother but grows rapidly and by the time it is eight weeks old, it is more than 20 times its weight at birth.

The giant panda is the national animal of China. It is an endangered species today, mainly because of the loss of bamboo forests.