Over the years, Minecraft has received numerous updates that have made its wildlife significantly more diverse and varied. However, if you don’t often go exploring or haven’t played the game in a while, you might not be familiar with some of these animals! Many are easily forgotten even by modern players, as they aren’t necessarily used for automatic farms or other projects. Nonetheless, taking a look at some animals besides sheep, chickens, or pigs is absolutely worthwhile to build a vibrant world and discover all facets of the game. Today, we’ll be looking at pandas, foxes, and dolphins, and in the second part, rabbits, camels, and goats.
Finding Pandas in Minecraft: Tips and Tricks
Pandas are animals that most players probably don’t encounter often. They can only be found in one biome and are quite rare, so you won’t always spot them. However, they are one of the cutest mobs in the game and definitely worth a visit!
Just like in real life, pandas love bamboo, which is why you can only find them in the jungle, primarily in the bamboo jungle. They usually appear in groups of just two, and there’s a 5% chance of spotting a baby panda! When the little ones sneeze, they occasionally drop a slimeball—a VERY slow version of a slime farm. Pandas eat both bamboo and cake, with a funny animation to go along! However, they can only be bred with bamboo and near a bamboo plant.
Breeding pandas is different too, as there are seven distinct personalities determined by genes. This makes pandas much more complex than other animal types in Minecraft. Each of the seven variants also has its own texture, which is perfect for collectors!
The seven types of pandas are:
Normal pandas are the most common form and don’t have any special behavior patterns.
Lazy pandas move very slowly and enjoy rolling on their backs. Even delicious bamboo can’t change their behavior.
Worried pandas are afraid of players and monsters. During a thunderstorm, they hide their faces in their front paws.
Playful pandas love to roll and frolic around. However, this can be dangerous if there’s a cliff nearby.
Aggressive pandas attack the player multiple times when provoked (unlike normal pandas that only retaliate once). They also defend other pandas nearby if attacked.
Brown pandas are the rarest variant but behave similarly to normal pandas.
Weak pandas sneeze more frequently and have only half the health of normal pandas.
Foxes in Minecraft: Clever Survivalists
Foxes are extremely shy animals that run away from you and love to hide. They enjoy sleeping during the day as they are mostly nocturnal. There are both orange and white foxes, depending on how cold the taiga biome is. You can somewhat tame foxes. A baby fox that you have bred yourself won’t run away from you. To do this, feed two adult foxes with glow berries or sweet berries. You can also use leads to guide foxes to your desired location.
In the wild, foxes follow various patterns. During the day, they sleep or sit in the shade, while at night, they go hunting. They leap high into the air and prey on chickens, rabbits, small turtles, and various fish. Snow foxes can get stuck in deep snow after a jump.
Foxes can hold items in their mouths when you throw them to them. You can give them a sword to attack or a totem of undying, which they will actually use! However, they will eat food immediately. They can also search for other items, including rare emeralds, rabbit and chicken items, leather, and wheat.
The cute creatures are most useful for an automatic sweet berry farm. Foxes “harvest” sweet berries, and if you have a minecart with a hopper underneath, they will be automatically collected. You can use sweet berries as a food source, breed more foxes, or trade them for an emerald with a butcher villager at a rate of 10 berries for one emerald. This makes such a farm a great source for trading!
Dolphins in Minecraft: Water Adventures and Ruins
Dolphins are also exciting animals and can be found in ocean biomes, except in cold waters. They spawn in groups of one or two and swim happily through the sea. The game treats them similarly to squids, meaning they despawn if you move too far away.
Unfortunately, dolphins cannot be bred by the player, but there’s a 10% chance of a baby dolphin spawning in a group. You can, however, feed dolphins raw fish to gain their trust. They swim around, play with items floating in the water, and can even jump out of the water! If you feed them often enough, they might even lead you to a shipwreck or a hidden ocean ruin that you can loot and search for archaeological artifacts. You can learn more about this in our post on archaeology. (Minecraft Archaeology: Discover All Dig Sites & Rare Items)
However, the “Dolphin’s Grace” ability is what you’re likely after. It allows you to swim much faster underwater when near dolphins. In fact, this mode of transport is even faster than using the Elytra on land. You just need to be within a 9-block radius of a dolphin to automatically receive the grace.
The effect gets even better with:
Boots enchanted with “Depth Strider 3” + “Frost Walker 3”
A floor made of soul sand
A potion of swiftness
All of this together results in a speed of nearly 145 m/s, propelling you swiftly through your world! While it takes some effort, such a tunnel will transport you extremely quickly from point A to B.
Conclusion: Discovering the Versatility of Minecraft’s Wildlife
Beyond many well-known features, Minecraft also offers small details that players often ignore and forget. Hopefully, we’ve introduced you to pandas, foxes, and dolphins, as these animals can be incredibly useful in certain situations! Rent your own Minecraft server with us and embark on a quest to find different types of pandas or build a dolphin tunnel together to connect constructions in your world. Meanwhile, you can also breed some cute foxes and let them bring you gifts!
