Hamilton Zoo welcomes endangered Sumatran tiger cubs

Hamilton Zoo's Sumatran tiger Kirana gave birth to two cubs on Wednesday. Photo / Hamilton Zoo

It’s new year, new babies for the team at Hamilton Zoo, who have welcomed two new critically endangered Sumatran tiger cubs this week.

Hamilton Zoo announced that the two cubs were born in the early hours of January 3, to mother Kirana and father Scout, and that both the cubs are healthy and strong.

It’s positive news for the zoo, as the Waikato Herald reported in October last year that the pair weren’t breeding as much as the zoo had hoped for.

New dad Scout was born at Australia Zoo and was previously kept at Christchurch’s Orana Wildlife Park, before he was brought to his Hamilton residence in August last year as part of a breeding programme to conserve the species.

The zoo’s exotics curator, Mark Turner, said at the time: “They recorded 15 matings in a day, but that’s actually not that many. Ideally, you want around 30. So, it’s hard to know if she is pregnant yet.

Hamilton Zoo's Sumatran tiger, Scout, was brought to the zoo as part of a breeding programme to conserve the species in 2023. Photo / Hamilton Zoo

“We need to wait and see if she is coming back into season, or oestrus as we say. If she doesn’t, then there is a possibility that she has conceived, but we won’t know for sure until she is further along.”

Sumatran tigers’ pregnancies typically last just over 100 days, meaning conception was likely to have taken place towards the end of September.

Carnivore Team Leader Shane Fox said the team is very excited about the cubs, but it would be a little while before the public is able to see them.

“We’re excited about the new additions but the cubs have a lot of bonding and development to do with mum over the next few months before they’re ready to venture out on to public display.

“Keep an eye out on our socials for all the latest news, we look forward to sharing updates on their development with you.”

According to Auckland Zoo, who also welcomed two cubs this week, there are thought to be fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild.

They are found only on the island of Sumatra, where they face habitat loss and poaching as their biggest threats.

The Hamilton cubs are the first to be born at the zoo since the birth of Kirana and her brother, Kembali, in 2014.

Malisha Kumar is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined the Waikato Herald in 2023 after working for Radio 1XX in Whakatāne.

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