The Chinese news agency says zoologists have collected semen from 30 of the remaining 44 males in existence.

And a training centre has been set up to prepare any tigers born by artificial insemination for life in the wild.

The South China Tiger is listed as one of the world's 10 most endangered species.

In the 1950s, China was home to more than 4,000 of the tigers. There are now only about 20 living in the wild and those surviving in captivity are reported to be in poor health.

Zoologists in China's Chongqing city hope the test-tube breeding project will boost the tiger population, which experts say must hover around 100 to ensure their survival.

China's captive tigers are reportedly in poor health, with many of them sick, handicapped or old, and there are only nine female tigers of breeding age still alive.

The South China tiger used to be the most common of the four species found in China.

But unrestricted hunting after the Chinese Government branded it a pest saw about 3,000 of them killed.