We may finally know why pandas are so bad at sex

Pandas are famously reluctant to reproduce (Picture: Getty)

Poor pandas. The iconic bear of China is officially no longer endangered, and yet scientists still can’t stop discussing their sex lives.

Mind, after decades of intervention, they’re probably not too prudish.

And even though there are now enough giant pandas in the wild to ensure they’re not at immediate risk of disappearing – although habitat destruction and climate change still pose challenges to their survival – the fact remains that a lot of them are still really quite bad at sex.

Not only are males just not particularly interested in the horizontal tango, many don’t know how to properly mount females to get the business done.

Combine that with the fact females have a fertile window of about 40 hours one a year, and you can see how the problems arise.

But now, scientists may have cracked why males aren’t fussed about getting jiggy. Sort of.

Researchers at Beijing Normal University investigated whether the bear’s gut microbiome may be having an effect on their libido.

In humans, microbes in the digestive system can be both helpful and harmful, and have been shown to influence both physical and mental health. Conditions linked to the microbiome include anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, diabetes and even cancer.

Suspecting that the panda’s microbiome may be affecting their behaviour, the team analysed poop samples from 20 different male giant pandas, some of which were pretty good at sex, others less so.

Sometimes chilling is just more important than procreating (Picture: Getty/iStockphoto)

The results showed one major difference. The good sex group had significantly more of the gut microbe Clostridium.

Co-author Professor Dingzhen Liu said: ‘We’ve found the relationship, but we’re not sure yet whether this is the only real reason for their poor sexual performance.’

Speaking to Metro.co.uk’s sister publication New Scientist, he said while the bigger picture is more complex, the findings could help provide better nutrition for giant pandas kept in captivity.

The results may improve panda nutrition (Picture: Getty)

For example, bamboo shoots can help boost Clostridium. Professor Liu suggested rotating the types of bamboo fed to pandas at different times of the year to better mimic their diet in the wild.

Megan Owen from the San Diego Wildlife Alliance in California, who was not involved in the study, said: ‘This has very important implications for conservation’.

The study is published in the journal Ecology And Evolution.