Giant Panda

Giant Pandas live in dense bamboo forests in the misty, rainy mountains of southern

China.

Currently, there are only about 1,500 surviving in the world. The average lifespan in

the wild is around 20 years. Pandas eat almost nothing but bamboo shoots and

leaves; this accounts for 99% of their diet, and they spend about 12 hours a day

doing it. Bamboo is not very nutritious, so to stay healthy they have to eat up to 15%

of their body weight in 12 hours and can eat up to 38kg a day. Babies eat bamboo

between 1 year and 18 months old once weaned off mother’s milk.

A fully grown Panda can weigh between 80- 150 kg. Female Pandas are good

swimmers

And unlike bears, they do not hibernate.

This is the start of my latest painting, and during the next few months I will be adding

further stages to show how it’s progressing.