Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) wildlife photograph

Expedition 🇨🇳 China

Giant Panda in China

Where to spot the giant panda in China, and how to log the discovery in Catch'Um.

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Finding Giant Panda in China

Looking for the giant panda in China? Start with Chengdu Panda Base, Wolong National Nature Reserve, and Foping National Nature Reserve, where access and habitat make a sighting more likely than a chance roadside glimpse.

Several parks and reserves in China are worth planning around. Chengdu Panda Base (Sichuan); Wolong National Nature Reserve (Sichuan); Foping National Nature Reserve (Shaanxi). Use the notes under each spot to match the trip to your route.

China context: Giant pandas in bamboo mountains, golden snub-nosed monkeys in the high forests, and one of the world's richest biodiversity portfolios.

In China, look especially around montane bamboo forest and temperate forest. Those settings usually put you closest to where this species is active.

Where to spot one

  • Chengdu Panda Base

    Sichuan

    The world's best-known panda research and breeding centre, with bamboo groves full of black-and-white bears.

    View on map →Official site →

  • Wolong National Nature Reserve

    Sichuan

    Mountain bamboo forest in the Minshan range, one of the first and most important wild panda reserves.

    View on map →Official site →

  • Foping National Nature Reserve

    Shaanxi

    Qinling Mountains forest, home to giant pandas and golden snub-nosed monkeys in temperate bamboo habitat.

    View on map →

Full species guide

Biology, interesting facts, identification, and conservation live on the Giant Panda field guide. This page stays focused on finding one in China.

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Log the Giant Panda in China

Spot one in the wild, then scan it in Catch'Um to log your rare discovery.