Edinburgh zoo pandas: IVF result known by summer

IT will be summer before Edinburgh Zoo experts know if the artificial insemination procedure carried out at the weekend on giant panda Tian Tian has been successful.

Tian Tian was artificially inseminated over the weekend. Picture: TSPL

She received IVF treatment in the hope of making her pregnant after natural mating was not attempted between her and male Yang Guang within the 36-hour breeding window. Scientists who have been monitoring them at the Zoo decided that Tian Tian was showing signs that were not “conducive to mating”.

A spokeswoman for the zoo said the procedure went well and the pandas will be off display until tomorrow.

“Yang Guang had been interested and shown consistently encouraging behaviour. However based on his many years’ experience, our Chinese colleague Professor Wang felt that although Tian Tian had displayed all of the correct behaviours, she had also displayed signs that told him she would not be conducive to mating.”