Panda porn fails to inspire couple

A Thai zoo has again resorted to artificial insemination of its giant pandas after pornography, low-carb diets and even a spell out in the cold failed to inspire the celibate pair. Chiang Mai zoo's star residents, nine-year-old Chuang Chuang and his eight-year-old partner Lin Hui, have showed no interest in reproducing the traditional way since they arrived on a 10-year loan from China in 2003.

But determined zoo officials, despite failing in a previous attempt at sperm donation two years ago, said they were hopeful a second try could finally produce a cub. "The artificial insemination was successfully conducted on February 18 at 1.30pm, which was the most suitable time for successful reproduction," Sophon Dumnui, the head of the team behind the attempt, said in a statement.

The zoo must now wait up to three months to find out if the method has worked. Hopes were first raised among zoo officials this year when cold weather in the northern city in January prompted an unusually frisky response from Lin Hui.

Authorities took the pair out of their usual climate-controlled environment in the hope that the chilly climes would provoke a steamy response during the pandas' mating season. Lin Hui was first artificially inseminated with semen from her companion in April 2007, but she failed to become pregnant.

The previous year Chuang Chuang, who had been deemed too heavy to mate with Lin Hui, lost seven kilograms on a low-carbohydrate diet, and was then shown 15-minute video clips of successful panda couplings. But the panda porn did little to inspire.

Giant pandas, notorious for their low sex drive, are among the world's most endangered animals. Nearly 1 600 pandas are believed to survive in the wild in China and about 180 are being raised in captivity in zoos worldwide.