With their black eye patches and enormous, bumbling frames, giant pandas are some of the most loveable wild animals in the world – but they have faced significant threat from habitat loss and declining food sources with forests cleared for farming and the timber trade.
Primarily found in remote, mountainous regions of southwest China, giant pandas are solitary animals that spend their days sleeping, eating bamboo, and sleeping some more. This video gallery captures the national animal of China at its most playful, most lumbering and most endearing.
Giant pandas fighting over a prime spot. Their physique contributes to their clumsiness, as they have short limbs and round bodies – so often lose grip and roll around (which is something they seem to often enjoy) (credit: Getty)The majestic yawn of a giant panda. These animals are known for their large amounts of sleep, napping for several hours at a time. This is due to their slow metabolism and diet – bamboo is low in energy and nutrients so they must conserve energy (credit: Getty) Giant panda cubs playing together. Giant pandas are solitary animals for most of their lives, leaving their mother and siblings when they are about two years old (credit: Getty)Giant panda plays on a fallen tree trunk in China. Young giant pandas are very playful and enjoy climbing trees. Despite their bulky physique, giant pandas are surprisingly agile and can scale trees with ease (credit: Getty)Panda having a feast of bamboo, which makes up the vast majority of their diet. They consume large quantities of bamboo, up to 38kg a day – which means they spend most of their day feeding (or sleeping) (credit: Getty)