A helping hand for Adelaide Zoo’s Giant Pandas

A team of fertility experts from South Australia’s leading fertility clinic, Repromed, has advised that the time is near for the breeding season of Adelaide Zoo’s Giant Pandas, Wang Wang and Funi.

Headed by Deputy Scientific Director, Dr Deirdre Zander-Fox, Repromed’s human reproductive specialists have been working with Adelaide Zoo vets to identify the breeding window of the pandas.

“Having played our part in creating 11,000 babies, we know too well that sometimes the miracle of life needs a little help so we are proud to be able to offer our level of expertise to Adelaide Zoo,” Dr Zander-Fox said.

This is not the first time Repromed has worked with Zoos SA vets to assist in animal reproduction and has given full use of the organisation’s extensive resources for this project.

“Funi will be fertile for only one to three days, so it’s absolutely critical that we don’t miss this opportunity.

“We are testing daily urine samples to monitor the female panda Funi’s hormone cycle - looking for a spike in Oestrogen levels, an early sign of ovulation.

“We will be working around the clock in the next few weeks, keeping a close eye on the hormone levels to pinpoint the exact time of ovulation,” Dr Zander-Fox said.

Adelaide Zoo has reported changes in Wang Wang and Funi’s behavior in the past two weeks indicating the pandas are getting ready to breed.

Adelaide Zoo Veterinarian, Dr David McLelland, said artificial insemination will be used alongside natural breeding attempts to maximise the chance of breeding.

Repromed has a long history of delivering excellence in the standard of care, innovation and leading fertility success rates throughout South Australia and the Northern Territory.

For more information please contact: Lucie Reichstein 0488 244 212