Endangered newborn tiger cub triplet dies one week after birth in Banham Zoo – and just a month after death of its father
- The tiger cub died at Banham Zoo because it struggled to suckle from its mother
- The cub’s father, Kuzma, died in March from a tumour that caused heart failure
An endangered newborn tiger cub triplet has died one week after being born and nearly one month after the death of its father at Banham Zoo.
The zoo in Norfolk posted the announcement on social media saying they were ‘deeply saddened’ by the death of the Amur tiger cub’s death.
Amur tigers, or Siberian tigers, are an endangered species with less than 500 estimated to be left in their natural habitat.
The mother tiger, named Mishka, gave birth to the trio on May 1 and, by May 7, one of the cubs was found dead on CCTV in the cubbing box.
The father tiger, Kuzma, sadly died in March before the birth after suffering from a tumour that caused heart failure.
Mother Amur tiger, Mishka, is pictured with her cubs, one of which died one week after being born
A post-mortem confirmed that the cub had died because it struggled to suckle from its mother
A spokesperson for Banham Zoo said: ‘We are deeply saddened to announce that one of our three tiger cubs, born on May 1st, has sadly passed away.
‘Mother Mishka gave birth to all three cubs inside her cubbing box, and since their birth, our zookeepers have been keeping a close eye on the cubs via remote CCTV.
‘On May 7th, our keepers discovered that one of the tiger cubs inside the den had sadly passed away.
‘The first eight weeks are incredibly risky for tiger cubs. Following a post-mortem, it was confirmed that the cub had struggled to suckle from Mishka.
‘The two surviving cubs are thriving and making excellent progress.
‘They appear to be growing stronger and healthier with each passing day.
‘We appreciate your support and understanding during this difficult time, and our thoughts are with our keepers in particular.’
