Giant Panda Stamps!

Scientific name: Ailuropoda melanoleuca meaning "black and white cat-foot"

Chinese name translates literally to "big bear cat".

For many years, the Giant Panda was thought to be a member of the Procyonidae family (racoons), but more recent genetic testing suggests that they really are true bears and part of the Ursidae family. Unlike other bears, they are primarily herbivorous, eating mostly bamboo, but sometimes other foods such as honey, eggs, fish, yams, shrub leaves, oranges and bananas when available. Interestingly enough, they still have the digestive system of a carnivore, meaning they don't process cellulose particularly efficiently. This means they have to eat a LOT of bamboo to derive the necessary nutrition -- an average Giant Panda may eat as much as 9-14 kg (20-30 pounds) of bamboo shoots per day.

Giant Pandas are on the endangered species list and, largely thanks to the World Wildlife Fund, are an icon for wildlife conservation.

Most of all, they're just plain cute.

So if you've got any Giant Panda stamps, let's see 'em. This one is from Mongolia. Issued in 1974, it is one of a seven stamp set of various types of bears.

Sorry, no Pandas, but I have a big brown bear.



About two years ago, I was working in Mississauga, Ontario. I passed the mail room, and noticed a box, in the trash, with this $8.00 stamp.

The stamp was issued around 2006, [I could be mistaken on the exact year], but here is what really caught my eye.

If you look at the cancel, it is not a modern day cancel.

I scanned the stamp, and I emailed the scan, to two fellow collectors
up in Canada.

Both guys were amazed, It appears that the Postal worker, grabbed whatever he could find to cancel the stamps, on the box.

The hand cancel that is on that stamp, is from a devise that was retired from the CPS in the late 1890's

That was a really serendipitous find. Very pretty stamp (I like bears of all sorts) and an atypical cancel that doesn't interfere with the design.

Once we get my daughter's registration straightened out here on the forum, she will be delighted to see this topic--ever since she was able to say, "Mine!", she's been collecting Pandas! This will help jump start her collection!

Thanks for the post!

Gussyboy1

Here is a set of Giant Panda first day covers from China issued in 1985. The stamps' artist, Han Meilin, also did the matching cover cachets for Fleetwood. I don't understand why he chose to obscure the faces of his subjects, but guess it is his artist's prerogative to do so.

i have a couple of covers with panda souvineer sheets,,i think from Nicaraugua..they are oversized !

Here is a real cool one, The US 29 cent panda stamp cancelled with Pandas