UK’s only pandas, Tian Tian and Yang Guang, return to China after 12 years at the Edinburgh zoo without conceiving
- Tian Tian and Yang Guang arrived at Edinburgh Zoo in December 2011, but were unable to conceive during their time in the Scottish capital
- A female panda has a single oestrous cycle in the spring in which she is fertile for only 24 to 36 hours, according to one conservation organisation
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UK’s only pandas return to China after 12 years at the Edinburgh zoo
The UK’s only giant pandas left Edinburgh for China on Monday after spending 12 cubless years in the Scottish capital.
It was hoped that female Tian Tian (“Sweetie”) and male Yang Guang (“Sunshine”) would produce a cub during their stay at Edinburgh Zoo.
But the bears, who even had a special black, white, grey and red tartan created in their honour, never succeeded in conceiving.
“It’s sad that Tian Tian hasn’t bred here, we would obviously really have liked her to have done so, but this is not unusual with giant pandas,” said Simon Girling, head of veterinary services at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS).
“I think we’re all quite sad to see them go, they are two lovely individuals, lovely characters, and we’ve got to know them really well.”
The pandas were transported to the airport in metal crates and loaded into a cargo plane with a pallet of bamboo ahead of their flight back to China.