Giant Panda

They are very cute animals, and they look huggable, but just like any wild animal you have to be careful around them. I don't care how long they have been in captivity, they can turn on you in a minute, just like any wild animal can. But I guess unless you live in central China or thereabouts, a person don't have much to be concerned about.

I think they are cool animals. They have bread successfully in captivity. I doubt they will ever flourish in the wild again though.

Yah, these are really cute little guys...until someone rubs you down with fresh bamboo and locks you in the cage with one. I imagine it would be something like being descended upon by one of those giant, mindless creatures from one of  those 50's era atomic insect flicks...Up Date: Yesterday, some guy who thought that pandas were sooooooooo cute and lovable, went over the wall at the Beijing Zoo to retrieve a toy that his child had dropped and got seriously mauled. Zoo keepers had to use tools to release the panda's jaw grip on the idiot.Another Public Service Announcement by the "Pandas Are Bears, Too, You Idiot" Coalition for Higher Walls at the Panda Display.

LOVE EM!!!

Currently in litigation to get a share of the royalties from the Beijing Olympics, these bears are tied with polar bears as the most financially successful ursines.They are also apparently considering legal action against facebook and myspace users for "excessive cuteness and overuse of OMG"On a side note, I'm amused at the heated little debates about whether this is a raccoon or a bear among earlier reviewers.  Here's a professional opinion:"The giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), sometimes called the black-and-white cat-foot, is a kind of mammal from the family of the bears (Ursidae). The Ailuropodinae is the oldest family of the most primitive lineage of bears and the fossils of the oldest ancestral panda, Ailuropoda lufengensesis, which are found in souther China, are about 8 million years old. Comparative blood-protein tests and molecular-genetic investigations of the recent research has also indicated that while the giant panda branched off independently on the evolutinary tree... Read more

OK myspace and facebookers, I get it, Pandas are cute. But reading through the reviews below might have dropped my IQ by a few points.

<33333 themmm! Very cutee! : )

There Sooo Cute!

pandas are grreat save the pandas!!!

cute!!its a shame their habitate is dissapearing

awwww ^^

cute=]

they're freakn adorable

awwwww i want a panda bear too

Pandas are my favorites...

I love Panda's.

I wanna go to china they are so adorable

I love pandas. They are so cool and unique.

So cute.

I LOVE PANDAS!!!!!!!!!!!

yes something cuddly finally. i heart pandas. i have a pair of underwear with drawing of... um.. nevermind.

like most bears

pandas are so cute!

I like their exotic looks (their ears, eyes, legs, and midsection of their body is black) which set them apart from other bears.

AWESOME AND CUTE

awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

These things are the coolest...Just like Kung Fu Panda...LOL

Panda's are in the family Procyonidae, not Ursidae. They are closer to raccoons than bears. Do not make statements unless you have checked the source. Or if you are a biologist, I got that working for me.

I like all animals, but I hear that these sweet looking things can be particularly nasty if you're in their way.

The giant panda, a black-and-white bear, has a body typical of bears. It has black fur on ears, eye patches, muzzle, legs, and shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white. Although scientists do not know why these unusual bears are black and white, some speculate that the bold coloring provides effective camouflage into their shade-dappled snowy and rocky surroundings. The panda's thick, wooly coat keeps it warm in the cool forests of its habitat. Giant pandas have large molar teeth and strong jaw muscles for crushing tough bamboo. Many people find these chunky, lumbering animals to be cute, but giant pandas can be as dangerous as any other bear.

HistoyFan and sfalconer and anyone else who believes the same way are VERY wrong. Pandas are bears. They are NOT marsupials. They do NOT have a pouch. Learn your facts befopre getting angry at people. Here is a link for you doubters: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/GiantPandas/Frequ entlyAskedQuestions/default.cfm Ned

For the millionth time, a Panda is a marsupial. There is a difference. Bears give regular live birth. Marsupials give live birth in a pouch. This includes koalas, tazzie devils, possums (only marsupial native to the U.S.), wallabys, kangaroos, wombats, etc. etc.

They're cute

tboneya's absolutely right. The big, cuddly-looking black and white Panda bears that we're familiar with are actually the Giant Panda, ailuropoda melanoleuca (there are other species of Panda, like the lesser or red panda). There is a great debate whether or not the Panda is more closely related (on the genetic level) to the same family as raccoons, bears, or if they are unique enough to be their own family. Decreasing habitats and their solitary attitudes (they don't get together too much except to breed, and that's not that often) don't help their status as being endangered. There are many estimates of their population, but almost all count less than 2000 individuals are alive in the world.

They're so cute. I want one of my very own. And tboneya, I didn't know pandas are not really bears. Please explain.