Tigers turn a blind eye to zoo romance

Molek the tiger casts a cautious eye over her new enclosure Picture / Brett Phibbs

A careful courtship at Auckland Zoo started yesterday, but the two Sumatran tigers at the centre of it were sleepily unaware of all the fuss - and each other.

New male Oz is being introduced to his intended, six-year-old Molek, who arrived from Hamilton Zoo on Tuesday.

It is the zoo's first attempt at tiger breeding.

"Putting them together will be a fraught day," said zoo veterinarian John Potter. "Tigers are not always friendly to each other."

Molek made her first foray into the open after keeping an eager crowd waiting for more than two hours.

She poked her nose out of her den, took a slow and slinky walk around and went back inside.

If Oz noticed from next-door, he gave no sign. The 22-month-old male, who arrived from Tel Aviv Zoo last month, snoozed at the farthest end of his enclosure.

Over the next few weeks Molek will be settled in and might manage to attract Oz's attention with a growl or two. A tiger's roar can be heard up to two kilometres away.

But he is the one who will have to make all the moves, as zoo staff get him used to a crate on wheels which will then be rolled into her den area for a few hours at a time.

The next step is to let Oz out of the crate while a a wire mesh separates the pair.

That is when staff will get their best chance to assess the chances of romance.

"We'll be looking for any signs of aggressive behaviour," said zoo curator Brooke Noonan, "but it's an exciting time, slowly getting them together."

If all goes well, Molek will roll around and rub her face against the wire when Oz comes to visit. The best time to give the two an opportunity to mate is at the beginning of her cycle.

"When she's ovulating obviously she'll be more receptive to him," Ms Noonan said.

When the two are put together, staff will have fire extinguishers at the ready.

"You just need anything that makes a noise," she said. 'We won't actually use them on the tigers."


Rare breed

* Sumatran tigers are critically endangered - fewer than 400 are thought to be left in the wild

* Through its tiger programme, Auckland Zoo is financially supporting the Kerinci Seblat National Park tiger conservation project in south-east Asia