Pandas at Play

The giant pandas are solitary animals. They live in rough, mountainous terrain and require large quantities of vegetation for their daily fare. One theory for their striking colour pattern is that they need to see each other from a long distance in order to avoid competing for food. They usually want to be alone. Of course, males and females sometimes come together. Then, for a brief time, they engage in playful, gentle 'wrestling matches'. I was fortunate enough to witness this behaviour with a captive pair. This seems quite comical to most human eyes.

As a wildlife enthusiast, however, I am concerned about breeding success for endangered species, so I hope that this behaviour could lead to an increase in the panda population.