EDINBURGH Zoo's giant pandas will return to China in December, it has been confirmed.
Tian Tian and Yang Guang have been on loan to the zoo since 2011.
Under the agreement, the pandas were to go back to China after 10 years, but this was extended due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Unfortunately, the pair have not produced any offspring in Scotland. The zoo and veterinarians from China made eight unsuccessful attempts at artificial insemination and stopped in 2021, when the giant panda breeding programme ended.
Due to the programmes expiration, the amount being paid annually to China for the pandas was halved for the two-year extension from £750,000.
Alison Maclean, the carnivore team leader at Edinburgh Zoo, has cared for the pandas since 2011 so will be travelling with them back to China to help them settle into their new homes.
Maclean said: "We are making arrangements with our partners in China for Yang Guang and Tian Tian to return in early December, possibly during the first week.
"Visitors to the zoo can expect to see them indoors and outside until the end of November, after which viewing will be outdoors only until they leave."
David Field, the RZSS chief executive, said: "With more than a million species at risk of extinction and our natural world in crisis, Yang Guang and Tian Tian have had an incredible impact by inspiring millions of people to care about nature.
"Through scientific research alongside the University of Edinburgh, we have also made a significant contribution to our understanding of giant pandas, which will be of real benefit to efforts to protect this amazing species in China.
"It is encouraging that in recent years the outlook for giant pandas in the wild has improved, which gives real hope for the future."
