Edinburgh Zoo's director of Giant Pandas reveals how Tian Tian and Yang Guang made it to Scotland

Yang Guang (male giant panta) (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Tian Tian and Yang Guang – or Sweetie and Sunshine – were the first ever adult giant pandas to leave China as part of the worldwide breeding programme.

Since they set paw on Scottish shores in December 2011, they have become furry icons who still attract worldwide attention.

Iain Valentine, RZSS Edinburgh Zoo’s Director of Giant Pandas, gives iN10 the inside scoop on the adorable duo.

The pandas now have many fans around the world, including former First Minister Alex Salmond.

Alex Salmond at Edinburgh Zoo beside the male giant panda Yang Guang (PA)

First steps

The process started in 2006, but momentum only really picked up pace in 2008, before the agreement was publicly signed in early 2011.

It was a lengthy affair, with negotiations taking place at the highest levels, but it actually had a very humble start.

I emailed San Diego Zoo – who already had a pair on loan from China – simply asking: “So, how do we go about getting a pair of giant pandas?”

The pandas have landed

The actual arrival was fairly quick. We had less than a week’s notice from our Chinese colleagues before the day the pair touched down on the tarmac of Edinburgh Airport to bagpipes, kilts and the world’s media trying to catch a glimpse of the rare pair.

Special permission was given to fly the pandas directly into Edinburgh, including obtaining animal transportation legislation, and Tian Tian and Yang Guang also had to spend a month in quarantine before coming to the UK.

There was a departure ceremony for them in China, as well as an arrival ceremony and press conference in Edinburgh.

Mad early days

It was an absolute whirlwind that can only be described as crazy and a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The pandas were off show for the first two weeks to allow them to settle in, before going on show prior to Christmas. People poured in to see the pair, setting all-time highs for visitor figures and the press interest was phenomenal.

Two Chinese colleagues stayed here for a few weeks to ensure the pandas settled in properly as, although there had been extensive training in China, the whole experience of caring for giant pandas was still quite new for the team.

Global stars

The arrival was seen by 3.8 billion people around the world and their first-ever breeding season hit similar heights. At one point another zoo, who were in the process of receiving their pair, phoned to find out what on earth we were doing to create so much interest as, even some time after their arrival, Tian Tian and Yang Guang were still very much in the spotlight.

There is a very big Chinese audience interested in our pandas and, as well as visitors from that part of the world, they also regularly appear in Chinese media.

That old routine

Giant pandas are creatures of habit so it’s all about routine. First thing each morning the old bamboo from the night before comes out, their keepers clean their indoor and outdoor enclosure, their poo is collected and weighed and then the fresh bamboo goes in.

The gardens team either cut it fresh from the large bamboo plantation growing at the top of Corstorphine Hill or bring large volumes from our bamboo storage. The poo has to be weighed and visually examined every day by the keepers – the old saying “what goes in must come out” is particularly apt here! Everything from how much they have eaten, if they have eaten more shoots or stems, or if their tummy is feeling a bit wobbly.

Surprisingly, pandas do not just eat bamboo. Although it makes up the vast majority of their diet, they also enjoy panda cake – made fresh daily by their keepers to a secret Chinese
recipe – slices of carrot and the odd whole apple each day.

Tian Tian has been known to reach out and pluck a bird from the sky that dares to venture into her enclosure – while this does not happen often, there are usually a fair few shocked visitors when she does.

Tian Tian (female giant panda) (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Star struck

The reactions of visitors when they view them for the first time are often quite incredible.

There have been tears, marriage proposals, gasps of delight and children with panda as their middle name on the giant panda walkway.

If a panda is missing from our famous ‘panda cam’ for more than five minutes, the team know to expect emails of good-natured concern from members of the public.

High times and lowlights

Managing pandas involves a lot of highs and lows. Panda breeding is very difficult and stressful for the entire team and an incredible amount of work is done throughout the year to hone in on those few important hours when Tian Tian comes into season.

Cutting-edge scientific analysis showed that Tian Tian was pregnant – however, towards the end of her pregnancy there were hormone tests results which were atypical which indicated that she had likely re-absorbed the foetus.

Pre-breeding health checks, normally carried out the following spring, also support this.

While Tian Tian showed all the physical signs and behaviours of a pregnant panda, she passed the window of when she would have been likely to give birth.

Loving bond

The pair recognise the voices of their keepers and come when they are called.

There is a bond of trust in place that has to exist in order for important health checks and training.

Yang Guang is more interested in people than Tian Tian, however both do have a bond with their small pool of keepers.

Only a few lucky keepers get to work with the giant pandas as they can be sensitive to unfamiliar scents and sounds coming into their off-show behind the scenes areas.

Alison MacLean, Team Leader of the Carnivore Section at Edinburgh Zoo, meets a young Giant Panda at the Bifengxia Panda Centre near the city of Ya'an in Sichuan Province, China (PA) — Alison MacLean, Team Leader of the Carnivore Section at Edinburgh Zoo, meets a young Giant Panda at the Bifengxia Panda Centre near the city of Ya’an in Sichuan Province, China (PA)

Sheer personality

Both pandas have very different and distinct personalities.

Tian Tian is independent, strong-minded and determined. She’s also generally less people and food-focused, but play is something she particularly enjoys doing – from swinging on her hammock to charging round with one of her large enrichment balls. When her hormones are elevated she can be quite a temperamental girl!

Yang Guang is often called the gentle giant. He’s much more focused on people and food. While Tian Tian is uber-tidy and keeps her bamboo neatly stacked in one place, Yang Guang can ransack a room with his bamboo in a short space of time.

Learn a lesson

RZSS has an incredible 40 projects going on with scientists and researchers around the globe, from those here in Scotland like our partnerships with the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and the University of Edinburgh, to projects with universities dotted around the UK and beyond.

There are also more unusual but vital studies happening right now with the likes of Glasgow School of Art and Aberdeen University.

Some pretty amazing scientific discoveries have taken place already since the giant pandas arrived, a key one being that the RZSS scientists believe they have found the bio-marker for implantation – something that had eluded panda pregnancy researchers beforehand.