Sumatran tiger cub rolls in straw at London Zoo
(Picture: George Cuevas ZSL London Zoo)London Zoo has captured the first moments of life outdoors for three newborn Sumatran tiger cubs.
Images show the adorable trio rolling around in straw and being cared for by their 10-year-old mother, Gaysha, in the tiger enclosure.
For the first few weeks of their life the cubs stayed inside the cubbing den, before warm weather prompted Gaysha to bring them outside.
The critically endangered cubs, who were born at London Zoo in June, have just opened their eyes as part of their early developmental stages.
After three months, zookeepers will be able to determine their sexes and the cubs will be named.
The cubs have shown healthy signs already. They fed and took their first tentative steps “almost immediately”, staff said.
Their father Asim had also been gently approaching the cubs and getting to know his new family, London Zoo said.
The Sumatran tiger, whose habitat is the forests and jungles of Sumatra, Indonesia, are now classified as critically endangered.
They face threats of poaching, habitat loss and human conflict.
In the 1970s there were estimated to be 1,000 Sumatran tigers in the wild but today there are around 300.
“Should their numbers continue to decline at this rate, Sumatran tigers will face the very real threat of extinction within the next decade,” London Zoo said.
