Ailuropoda is an ursid genus containing five species of giant pandas. Only one species, the Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) currently exists; the other four species are prehistoric chronospecies. Despite its taxonomic classification as a carnivore, the panda has a diet that is primarily herbivorous, which consists almost exclusively of bamboo.
Pandas are descended from Ailurarctos, which lived during the late Miocene.
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Scientific name:
- Ailuropoda
