BEIJING A panda at a zoo in southern China attacked a student who snuck into its pen hoping for a cuddle with the endangered bear, Reuters reported state media as saying on Saturday.

The 20-year-old male student surnamed Liu jumped over the fence at the zoo in the tourist city of Guilin, ignoring warning signs not to, Xinhua news agency said.

`The panda, named Yangyang, was wide awake. Apparently scared by the intruder, he bit at Lius arms and legs.` it quoted an unnamed worker as saying after zoo keepers managed to calm the bear and rescue Liu, the report said.

`Yangyang was so cute and I just wanted to cuddle him,` Liu was quoted as saying from his hospital bed. `I didnt expect he would attack.`

Scientists believe fewer than 2,000 giant pandas live in the wild in China.