Two of the ‘rarest big cats on the planet’ born at Colorado zoo. Look at the cute cubs
Paloma Chavez
Mon, May 22, 2023
Screengrab from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo's Facebook page
A zoo in Colorado welcomed two Amur leopard cubs, a species that’s critically endangered, officials said.
Anya, a 9-year-old Amur leopard, became a first-time mama on Wednesday, May 17, three days after Mother’s Day, according to a May 19 Facebook post by the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
The two cubs make up 4% of the endangered species’ population, the Colorado Springs zoo said.
There are around 100 Amur leopards — described as “the rarest big cats on the planet” — left in the wild in Russia and China, zoo officials said.
“I think Anya is absolutely incredible. She looks confident and comfortable with the cubs, and we’re elated for her and her babies,” the post read. “I’m so proud of our animal care team and their commitment to Anya and the future of the Amur leopard species.”
Animal care manager Rebecca Zwicker said the first few weeks after a leopard cub’s birth are “extremely fragile” but that there’s no reason for concern as their mother is “patient and attentive.”
The first baby “quickly showed instincts to nurse,” which helped Anya get into mommy-mode when the second cub arrived, the zoo said.
“Once cub #2 smelled where cub #1 was having its meal, it made a baby beeline for the nipple. After a short sibling squabble, a full-bellied cub #1 moved aside for cub #2 to settle in for its first meal,” the post said. “Since then, both cubs have been nursing regularly and cub #2 is quickly catching up to its sibling’s energy level.”
Anya is the only one to have seen her cubs in person as the zoo is watching remotely from cameras placed in her den, officials said.
Officials haven’t identified the cubs’ sex and won’t be able to for some time, the post said.
As for naming, the zoo plans to keep its tradition by waiting 30 days before giving the cuties a name.
Colorado Springs is about 70 miles south of Denver.
Paloma Chavez
Mon, May 22, 2023
Screengrab from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo's Facebook page
A zoo in Colorado welcomed two Amur leopard cubs, a species that’s critically endangered, officials said.
Anya, a 9-year-old Amur leopard, became a first-time mama on Wednesday, May 17, three days after Mother’s Day, according to a May 19 Facebook post by the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
The two cubs make up 4% of the endangered species’ population, the Colorado Springs zoo said.
There are around 100 Amur leopards — described as “the rarest big cats on the planet” — left in the wild in Russia and China, zoo officials said.
“I think Anya is absolutely incredible. She looks confident and comfortable with the cubs, and we’re elated for her and her babies,” the post read. “I’m so proud of our animal care team and their commitment to Anya and the future of the Amur leopard species.”
Animal care manager Rebecca Zwicker said the first few weeks after a leopard cub’s birth are “extremely fragile” but that there’s no reason for concern as their mother is “patient and attentive.”
The first baby “quickly showed instincts to nurse,” which helped Anya get into mommy-mode when the second cub arrived, the zoo said.
“Once cub #2 smelled where cub #1 was having its meal, it made a baby beeline for the nipple. After a short sibling squabble, a full-bellied cub #1 moved aside for cub #2 to settle in for its first meal,” the post said. “Since then, both cubs have been nursing regularly and cub #2 is quickly catching up to its sibling’s energy level.”
Anya is the only one to have seen her cubs in person as the zoo is watching remotely from cameras placed in her den, officials said.
Officials haven’t identified the cubs’ sex and won’t be able to for some time, the post said.
As for naming, the zoo plans to keep its tradition by waiting 30 days before giving the cuties a name.
Colorado Springs is about 70 miles south of Denver.
Reuters
Fri, May 19, 2023
: A female Iberian lynx, a feline in danger of extinction, named Ilexa is released in Arana mountain range, southern Spain
MADRID (Reuters) - The number of endangered Iberian lynx in the wild in Spain and Portugal reached 1,668 in 2022, Spain's environment ministry said on Friday - a new record since a conservation push began 20 years ago to save a population that had dwindled to below 100.
In 2002, the species was on the brink of extinction due to poaching, road accidents and encroachment on their habitat by farming and industrial development. Only 94 specimens were registered in Spain and none in Portugal at that time.
Known for its pointy ears, long legs and leopard-like spotted fur, the Iberian lynx is a species distinct from the more common Eurasian lynx found from France to the Himalayas.
According to the annual population survey by the ministry, 563 kits were born last year to 326 she-cats, continuing the strong growth trend seen since 2015, when the International Union for Conservation of Nature downgraded the threat level to "endangered" from "critically endangered".
There are now 15 core habitats spread across the Iberian Peninsula, with more than four fifths of the wild cats located throughout central and southern Spain and the rest in Portugal, where 261 lynxes have been counted.
The ministry's report partly attributed the demographic boom to the success of a captive breeding and reintroduction programme launched in 2011. Since then, 338 lynx born in captivity have been released into the wild.
"This positive demographic evolution allows us to be optimistic about the reduction of the risk of extinction," the ministry said.
However, it added that it was necessary to continue ongoing conservation efforts, given that the species remains classified as endangered.
(Reporting by David Latona; Editing by Aislinn Laing and Alison Williams)
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