CINCINNATI, Ohio -- The
Cincinnati Zoo’s four Malayan tiger cubs are on display in the Zoo’s Tiger Canyon. The cubs spent 13 weeks bonding with their mother. They were born to mom “Hutan” and dad “Jalil” on March 21, 2009.
The public can enter the Zoo’s “Name the Tigers” contest and submit a name by logging on to the Zoo’s Web site at
www.cincinnatizoo.org. The contest ends July 17 and the winning name will be announced Friday, July 24. Winners will receive a basic level family membership to the zoo.
“The birth of these cubs help to keep the North American population of Malayan tigers demographically healthy,” said Mike Dulaney, Cincinnati Zoo Curator of Mammals and Tiger Subspecies Coordinator with the SSP. “With small populations, such as the one we are dealing with here, as years go by it is important not to let the breeding population becoming too aged and risk losing the genetic diversity these animals represent. These cubs are a critical component to the long term health and diversity of the subspecies.”
The Cincinnati Zoo has had Malayan tigers since 1990 and has produced 28 cubs since that time, most recently in 2001. These are the first cubs for both mom, and dad. “Hutan” is six-years old and came to Cincinnati from the Fort Worth Zoo. “Jalil” is eight-years old and was born at the Cincinnati Zoo in 2001, but moved to the Alexandria Zoo when he was six-months-old. He returned to Cincinnati in November 2007.
