National Panda Day is marked annually on March 16 to raise awareness about one of the most endangered animals across the world. On this day, conservationists and animal lovers spread the word about increasing efforts to protect and restore habitat for pandas.

Here are some fun facts about these animals:

  • An adult panda weighs more than 100 pounds and can be about 5 feet tall
  • An adult panda spends as long as 14 hours eating and can eat 26 to 60 pounds of bamboo a day
  • Pandas like fruits and can eat meat too
  • Pandas are usually born in August as their mating period is from March to May and gestation is three to five months

  • Pandas like to lick copper and iron

Here are some quotes, courtesy azquotes, to share on this day:

1. "I thought the secret of life was obvious: be here now, love as if your whole life depended on it, find your life's work, and try to get hold of a giant panda." – Anne Lamott

2. "I'm really into pandas right now. They're really scratching an itch for me. They're so goddamn cute." – Nick Kroll

3. "It's like the panda, they say that's dying out. But what do they do? When you see them they're just sitting in the jungle eating." – Karl Pilkington

4. "Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves." – Lynne Truss

5. "There's no point bleating about the future of pandas, polar bears and tigers when we're not addressing the one single factor that's putting more pressure on the ecosystem than any other, namely the ever-increasing size of the world's population." – Chris Packham

The giant panda is seen as an 'umbrella' species because its conservation is considered to help many less well-known animals, plants and birds
The giant panda is seen as an 'umbrella' species because its conservation is considered to help many less well-known animals, plants and birds AFP / STR
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