14 DAY TRIAL // Keepers at Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens in Florida have recently announced that, on November 16, a female Amur leopard living at this facility gave birth to a pair of cubs.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature presently considers Amur leopards to be a critically endangered species, and says that just 30 such big cats are left to inhabit forests in Russia's far east.
Hence, the birth of these twin Amur leopard cubs was welcomed by conservationists and is argued to bring new hope for the survival of the species.
The female that gave birth to these cubs is named Makarii. Together with male Nicolai, this Amur leopard has delivered two other litters, Zoo Borns reports.
The couple's latest offspring were surprisingly active shortly after birth, and keepers at the Jacksonville Zoo say that this indicates that they are both in good health.
The cubs never say “no” to a meal, which is why vets expect that they will surely grow strong in no time.
Commenting on the arrival of this litter, the Zoo's deputy director of conservation and education said that, “We are very proud of our leopards and our animal care team who have successfully brought two more of these extremely rare cats into the world.”