CCTV unexpectedly catches rare wild giant panda on midnight stroll

There are believed to be less than 2,000 giant pandas in the world

A Giant Panda up a tree in China (AFP)

A wild giant panda that took a midnight stroll in China was captured on CCTV appearing to inspect his local neighbourhood.

Surveillance footage picked up the giant panda – an endangered breed that are rarely seen outside captivity – as it calmly strolled about the suburban community in southern China.

Giant panda populations in the wild are slowly recovering after a concerted effort from Chinese authorities.

The country’s recent National Giant Panda survey reported that the number of pandas in the wild had increased by 16.8 per cent over the last ten years. The WWF claims there are 1,826 of the animals left in the wild.

Giant pandas can grow to more than four feet tall and weigh up to 330 pounds, living on average 20 years. They are highly solitary animals, using their highly developed sense of smell to avoid one another.

Most of what conservationists know about pandas comes from studying the beloved mammals in zoos.