Researchers artificially impregnated 38 giant pandas this spring, resulting in 25 panda births this fall of which 21 survived, the Xinhua news agency reported.

"We owe this achievement to Chinese scientists," said Zhang Zhihe, director of the Giant Panda Breeding Technology Committee in the southwestern city of Chengdu.

"They have acquired mature technologies and valuable experience after years of hard work," he said.

Last year 30 artificial inseminations resulted in just 12 births and only nine survived, according to the agency.

The Chinese are fighting an uphill battle to preserve the giant panda, arguably the world's most famous endangered species, but are getting little help from the furry animal itself.

Giant pandas show little instinctive behavior in captivity, especially sexual desire, which, Xinhua explained, is "essential for natural mating and conception."

"Female pandas are extremely picky about their Mr Right," said Zhang.

The panda's reproductive problems extend beyond dating and mating, as clumsy mother pandas often do not know how to feed their cubs. In these cases scientists have to step in to help with artificial feeding, Xinhua said.

As of the end of 2004 China had raised 163 giant pandas in captivity, while almost 1,600 of the rare animals are believed to be living in the wild in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces.

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