Ailuropodinae

Ailuropodinae is a subfamily of Ursidae that contains only one extant species, the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) of China. The fossil record of this group has shown that various species of pandas were more widespread across the Holarctic, with species found in places such as Europe, much of Asia, North America and even Africa. The earliest pandas were not unlike other modern bear species in that they had an omnivorous diet but by around 2.4 million years ago, pandas had evolved to be more herbivorous. The giant panda (Ailuropoda) belongs to the order of Carnivora, this means that the macronutrients that are digested are more similar to those of carnivores than to that of herbivores even though their diet consists mainly of bamboo.

==Systematics== Ever since the giant panda was first described to science, they have been a source of taxonomic confusion, having been variously classified as a member of Procyonidae, Ursidae, Ailuridae, or even their own family Ailuropodidae. Part of their similarities with the red panda is in particular the presence of a "thumb" and five fingers; the "thumb" – a modified sesamoid bone – that helps it to hold bamboo while eating.