Giant Panda

If you want to see Pandas in the wild, there's relatively few options for doing so. The next best option to seeing them in the wild is to visit them at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China., home to roughly 100 pandas. It's filled with both Giant Pandas like this one chomping away, as well as a number of smaller, Red Pandas.

Ever since I started seeing animals out in the wild, it's been a bit difficult for me to enjoy seeing animals in captivity to the same extent. While I still feel there's great value in Zoos in bringing Animals closer to the populace, and especially children, who otherwise wouldn't be able to see them, it still doesn't compare to seeing animals in the wild. Everything from their size to their behaviors can be quite different in captivity.

I've seen some Giant Pandas in the San Diego Zoo, and while nice and enjoyable, going to see pandas in Chengdu is a completely different thing altogether. With so many pandas in one place, there's more room to spread out and see pandas doing different things. It's especially amusing to watch the cubs play and clumsily make their way around.

PRO TIP: Pandas tend to eat in the morning, then climb into a tree to sleep. If you want to see them when they're active, go see them in the morning.

Giant Panda stuffs it face, knowing that it's going to repeat yesterday's mistake, and overeat only to find itself deep in a food coma sleep.