The Pygmy Giant Panda is the earliest known ancestor of the Giant Panda. It was smaller in size (about 3 ft in length) while the modern panda grows to be around 5 ft in length. Research indicates that the giant panda has evolved for more than 3 million years completely separate from the lineage of other bears.
Animal groups that are related to it in time: ("Dog-like" Carnivorans) Wolves and foxes, seals, sea lions and walruses.