A pair of pandas are sent back to China after failing to produce babies.
Yang Guang and Tian Tian have lived in the home of Edinburgh Zoo since 2011.
There was hope they could produce panda cubs in abundance and increase the number of endangered species.
But sparks didn’t fly, and experts have since admitted that Tian Tian “wouldn’t have swept right” if a panda version of Tinder existed.
Both animals will be returned to China later this year.
Chief executive of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, David Field, told the Telegraph: Baby pandas are just beautiful. They are exquisite, they are endearing, they are delicious.
“They are one of the most wonderful ambassadors for people falling in love with nature again.
“Sometimes animals just don’t get along. Genetically, they were apparently an extremely good match, but behaviorally, if it were Tinder, Tian Tian might not have swiped right if she had the choice.
“They’re hugely symbolic, they’re iconic for conservation, and they make people smile with pure abandon.”
Tian Tian and Yang Guang were leased from the Chinese government for a period of 10 years at a reported annual cost of £600,000.
Both pandas were born in August 2003 and will be 19 years old in 2022.
Panda reproduction is notoriously rare due to their complex physiology and the fact that ovulation only occurs once a year.
Tian Tian had given birth to twins in her home country, but her first natural mating season in Edinburgh, in 2012, was unsuccessful.
A team of experts then artificially inseminated Tian Tian, meaning “sweetheart,” eight times with semen flown from a panda in China — but these attempts also failed.
Matters were further complicated in 2018 when Yang Guang had to have both testicles removed following the discovery of tumors, ruling out any unexpected happiness from their natural interest in each other.
While giant pandas may be waving goodbye to Edinburgh Zoo, there are plenty of other wild animals worth checking out.
There are two pairs of red pandas in the facility – Bruce and Ginger, and Kitty and Kevyn.
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