Tian Tian's enclosure is now closed until further notice.

Keepers believe Tian Tian may be expecting a cub

The panda enclosure at Edinburgh Zoo is closed until further notice due to the possible pregnancy of giant panda Tian Tian.

Britain's only female panda was artificially inseminated for the third time earlier this year. Experts say that she did conceive, but they did not know for sure if she was pregnant.

Now keepers at the Zoo have closed off Tian Tian's enclosure in the hope of the arrival of a rare cub.

A statement on the Edinburgh Zoo website says:  "Please be aware that due to our giant panda Tian Tian's potential pregnancy, the panda enclosure is now closed until further notice and both her and Yang Guang's panda cams have also now been turned off. There is no further news at this stage.

"Many thanks to our visitors and members for their understanding during this exciting, but delicate period."

Tian Tian was artificially inseminated in March after two previous attempts failed to produce a panda cub.

The procedure was carried out by an expert team of three veterinary surgeons, together with Doctor Wang Chengdong from the China Conservation and Research Centre for Giant Pandas. Only semen from the zoo's male giant panda Yang Guang was used during the procedure.

Tian Tian and Yang Guang arrived at Edinburgh Zoo in December 2011 and they are the first adult giant pandas to have ever come out of China.

Image (C) RZSS Edinburgh Zoo