San Diego Zoo officials attempt to get Bai Yun, a female giant panda, pregnant using the artificial insemination method.
Scientists at the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research revealed that they decided upon the artificial insemination procedure for Bai Yun after a couple of mating sessions with Gao Gao, a male panda at the zoo, went unsuccessful.
This is not the first artificial insemination process for Bai Yun. Her first cub Hua Mei was also born following artificial insemination in 1999 using sperm from Shi Shi, a male panda at the facility that died in 2008. Sperm samples of Shi Shi are still available at the facility's Frozen Zoo, which has been used to get Bai Yun pregnant.
Bai Yun was born in September 1991 at the Wolong Giant Panda Research Center in China. She was sent to the San Diego Zoo in September 1996 as part of a complex agreement between the American zoo and the Chinese research center.
"Bai Yun is a wonderful ambassador for her species, helping us learn about panda behavior, pregnancy and birth, and maternal care. She's the mother of Hua Mei, the first surviving giant panda born in the United States," per the San Diego Zoo.
In the past, Bai Yun also gave birth to five cubs sired by Gao Gao all by the natural way. The female panda was given anesthesia and then taken to the zoo hospital for conducting artificial insemination.
At 23 years the female panda is towards the end of her period of reproduction. Zoo officials suggest that they want Bai Yun to reach maternity for the last time. San Diego Zoo officials could soon request Chinese government officials to let Bai Yun and the 25-year-old Gao Gao to retire at the San Diego Zoo in emeritus, non-reproductive status.
The zoo will then hope for the Chinese authorities to send another young panda couple as part of the breeding program.
Giant pandas have been studied extensively; however, their reproduction process is still a mystery. The male and the female do not normally stay together but come in close proximity only during breeding periods.
Following a successful fertilization, a female panda normally gives birth to a cub in around 135 days. However, scientists have also recorded the period to range from 85 to 185 days.
San Diego Zoo officials suggest that they are examining Bai Yun's urine on a daily basis to see if the panda is pregnant.
Photo: Don DeBold | Flickr
