If I were an animal, I'd be a Panda!

Well, not really. That would mean I'm in seriously in danger of being the only one of my kind.

But I would be popular, and we all know how cool that is.

As these furry black and white creatures memorize and captivate our attention, one may wonder how they became so popular anyway.

• Their cat/raccoon-esq ears. Pandas were believed to be in the raccoon/cat family, anyway.
  
• The smokey-eye effect that no Hollywood make-up artist can pull off. Does that make the Panda sexy?
• Their bamboo diet, which has yet to be the new diet fads in America, following the Atkins, South Beach, and (God forbid,) the cabbage soup diet?
• Maybe it's the obvious--their black and white coat. Multi-colored ensambles are in this season.
  

Most likely, all of the above contribute to the consensus that panda bears are one of the most unique bears around. Uniqueness, evidently, leads to popularity.

And like most unique things, they're rare. For decades we've recognized the possible extinction Panda bears face in their Chinese and Tibetan habitats. Roughly 1,600 remain today, and their problems breeding don't make the situation any better.

While the biologists and zoologists figure out how to save them, producers and consumers map out how to market them.

Several Pandas are at the San Francisco and Atlanta Zoos for American's to oogle at behind bars. The Giant Panda Breeding Research Base in Chengdu, China is a tourist attraction aimed at promoting Panda awareness and popularity for anyone willing to make the journey there.

Panda bears: overrated phenomenon? Despite how cute they are, let's make saving these (and many other) endangered species. Their popularity sometimes helps in this endevor, but it's not something to take lightly.

As the old cliche goes: being popular isn't everything.

Photo Credit: Ng Han Guan/Associated Press