- Title: Endangered leopard cubs born at Crimea safari park
- Date: 25th August 2018
- Summary: NEAR BELOGORSK, CRIMEA (AUGUST 22, 2018) (REUTERS) LEOPARD CUB SLEEPING TWO LEOPARD CUBS SLEEPING IN HANDS OF CARETAKER PHOTOGRAPHER TAKING PICTURES OF LEOPARD CUBS LEOPARD CUBS IN HANDS OF CARETAKER LEOPARD CUB'S CLAWS VARIOUS OF LEOPARD CUBS MOVING AROUND ON GRASS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) DIRECTOR OF TAIGAN SAFARI PARK, OLEG ZUBKOV, SAYING: "We have been keeping Amur leopards for more than 20 years. Recently, we were fortunate in accepting (to the park) a black individual, and this is the first offspring that she has produced. To have a black offspring like this is just as rare as albinos to humans. Look (holds up cubs) an absolutely unique phenomenon, two absolutely different coloured little leopards." VARIOUS OF TIGER CUBS INTERACTING WITH LEOPARD CUBS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) TOURIST FROM VORONEZH, RUSSIA, SERGEI YUZHOKIN, SAYING: ""(I have) a great impression, they are beautiful kittens, they are our Russian pride. I would like to see more of them appear in nature, (more of them) to reproduce and to bring happiness to people." CARETAKER WITH LEOPARD CUBS NEAR BELOGORSK, CRIMEA (AUGUST 24, 2018) (REUTERS) VIEW OF TAIGAN SAFARI PARK NEAR BELOGORSK CRIMEA MALE BLACK LEOPARD NAMED OTHELLO (FATHER OF LEOPARD CUBS) IN CAGE MALE BLACK LEOPARD, NAMED OTHELLO, GROWLING VARIOUS OF FEMALE SPOTTED AMUR LEOPARD, NAME DESDEMONA (MOTHER OF LEOPARD CUBS) IN CAGE (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) TOURIST FROM ST. PETERSBURG, NATALIA RODIONOVA, SAYING: ""I have the best impression with leopards, especially the cubs, because they are so small and fluffy and make you want to play with them but then you look at their fearsome parents and feel kind of uneasy." MOTHER OF LEOPARD CUBS LYING IN CAGE VISITOR TAKING PICTURE
- Embargoed: 8th September 2018 17:59
- Keywords: Leopard cubs Crimea safari-park
- Location: NEAR BELOGORSK, CRIMEA
- City: NEAR BELOGORSK, CRIMEA
- Country: Ukraine
- Topics: Human Interest / Brights / Odd News,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA0018UOPKK9
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Crimea's Taigan Safari Park announced the birth of two Amur leopard cubs in August.
The pair of cubs are easily distinguishable because one is black and the other spotted, a phenomenon as rare as albinism in humans according to park director Oleg Zubkov.
This was the first time Desdemona, the female Amur leopard, has become a mother but so far it seems that motherhood suits the cat.
Leopards are notoriously difficult to breed in the wild because of their complex mating habits, and mothers rejecting offspring is not uncommon.
When tiger cubs were introduced to the leopard cubs during their first photoshoot zookeepers did not know what to expect, but the slightly older tigers began to guard the Amurs like they would with their own.
The births mark an uptick in numbers for the critically endangered big cat, with only a few dozen said to remain in the wild.
Native to the Russian Far East and northern China, their populations in the wild plummeted due to poaching and habitat loss.
Taigan Safari Park has kept Amur leopards for 20 years, according to Zubkov, and they are well equipped to raise the cubs into healthy adults.
The park keeps a scores of lions, tigers, and other big cats, but the birth of the pair brought a special buzz to the zookeeping community as well as the visitors.
Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine in March 2014. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2018. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None