What is the national animal of China? (2024)

FAQs

What's China's national animal? ›

The national animal in China is the giant panda. But did you know that there's also a red panda? These cute creatures live in the Himalayan Mountains of Southwestern China and other high mountains. They spend most of their time in the trees.

The Red-Crowned Crane is China's national bird. Grus japonensis is its scientific name.

The magnificent tiger, Panthera tigris is a striped animal. It has a thick yellow coat of fur with dark stripes. The combination of grace, strength, agility and enormous power has earned the tiger its pride of place as the national animal of India.

China's national treasure is the giant panda, commonly known as the panda. Pandas are omnivorous mammals, mainly eating bamboo, red grapes and wowotou. If they are wild pandas, they eat insects, bamboo rats and wild fruit.

Many species of animals are endemic to China, including the country's most famous wildlife species, the giant panda.

Those that are only found in China include giant pandas, Tibetan macaques, Chinese giant salamanders, golden snub-nosed monkeys, and Chinese sturgeons. The red panda, Siberian tiger, and Chinese sturgeon are in other countries too, but the Chinese zoos, safari parks, and breeding centers are good places to see them.

China does not have an “official” national flower, but the tree peony can be regarded as a national favorite. The tree peony (mudan) received the most votes in a survey conducted in 1994 in every district in China asking people to select a National Flower – a high honor for the peony in a country that loves flowers.

The Chinese Crested Tern is a critically endangered species and one of the rarest seabirds in the world; less than 100 individuals are thought to survive. The species is known as "The Mythical Bird" in China because it was thought to be extinct for 63 years before it was rediscovered in 2000.

It also boasts of three national animals: the giant panda, the Chinese dragon, and the red-crowned crane. These animals are also the national symbols of China. They are highly treasured and preserved by the government of China as a symbol of national heritage and mythology. What is this?

Which animal is very clever? ›

Dolphins are one of the most intelligent species on the planet; they are highly capable of both learning and mimicry. Dolphins in different pods use mud to create traps and use sponges for protection against coral as they search for food, demonstrating their ability to use tools and manipulate their surroundings.

Capable of going from 0 to 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds, the cheetah is considered the fastest land animal, though it is able to maintain such speeds only for short distances.

Bamboo contains very little nutritional value so pandas must eat 12-38kg every day to meet their energy needs. But they do branch out, with about 1% of their diet comprising other plants and even meat. While they are almost entirely vegetarian, pandas will sometimes hunt for pikas and other small rodents.

Pandas eat almost nothing but bamboo shoots and leaves. Occasionally they eat other vegetation, fish, or small mammals, but bamboo accounts for 99 percent of their diets. Pandas eat fast, they eat a lot, and they spend about 12 hours a day doing it.

For many decades, the precise taxonomic classification of the giant panda was under debate because it shares characteristics with both bears and raccoons. However in 1985, molecular studies indicate the giant panda is a true bear, part of the family Ursidae.

A species that is often referred to as the national animal of Japan is the green pheasant. The green pheasant is an omnivore species which has been found in Japan for a million years. Surprisingly this species is not found in other places in the world other than Japan.

The only natural habitat for giant pandas in the world is located in southwestern China. Combined with the requirement that all cubs must return to China this creates the sense that pandas belong in and to China, and a country can only receive them if they have good relations with the People's Republic.

The stone lion was often placed at the gates of imperial palaces and mausoleums of king because it was regarded as power symbol. Meanwhile in Chinese folk culture, the lion developed into a symbol of bravery and good luck.