A trio of adorable snow leopard cubs recently born at a popular Scottish wildlife park have been named. The two girls and a boy were the result of mum Animesh and first-time dad Koshi being paired together at the Highland Wildlife Park near Kingussie in May.
The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland confirmed that they have now been named Padme, Maya and Yashin, in tribute to the species’ native home across the Himalayas. Chosen by two of the wildlife conservation charity’s donors, one of the females has been named Padme meaning lotus flower and the male Yashin meaning lightning blot.
After a public vote hosted by long-time RZSS supporters, People’s Postcode Lottery, the third cub has been named Maya, the name of Buddha’s mother.
Following their first health check earlier this month, the three cubs have regularly been spotted out of the cubbing den, meaning lucky visitors could spot the triplets starting to explore.
In the wild, snow leopards can be found in the remote mountainous areas of central Asia. Now protected throughout much of their native range, snow leopard populations are still threatened due to a decline in available prey and human conflict.
Living collections manager at Highland Wildlife Park, Keith Gilchrist, said: “It has been a fantastic year of births here at the park with our three tiger cubs recently turning one and Brodie, our adorable polar bear cub, continuing to capture the hearts of our visitors.
"Now with the addition of our trio of snow leopard cubs, we can’t think of a better way to celebrate the park’s 50th year.”
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