Cade Lucas
Staff at Werribee Open Range Zoo are celebrating the birth of three lion cubs, the first in six years.
Eleven year old African lion, Nilo, gave birth to the three cubs, each weighing 1.5 kilograms, on Sunday evening following a three month pregnancy.
Werribee Open Range Zoo Director Dr Mark Pilgrim said the births were as important as they were exciting.
“It’s wonderful to have three more healthy African lions in the Australasian zoo breeding and conservation program.
“Unfortunately their wild cousins are facing increasing threats including human-wildlife conflict, poaching and habitat destruction.”
African lions are considered to be a threatened species, with only 23,000 to 39,000 remaining in the wild in sub-Saharan Africa.
The births are the product of a breeding pride established at Werribee in 2022 when the cubs’ father, Sheru, arrived from Sydney Zoo.
Nilo and the cubs will remain in a private area of the zoo for the next two months, something Dr Pilgrim said was similar to what occurs in the wild.
“In the wild, when it is time for a lioness to give birth, she will leave her pride to find a private shelter in the bushes or a cave.
“This is done to protect and care for her cubs while they are unable to defend themselves.
“Nilo and her cubs will have the opportunity to replicate those wild behaviours here at the Zoo, too.”
Visitors can still see Sheru and adult lioness, Asali, at the zoo’s African River Trail while Nilo and her cubs bond.
A voting competition to name the three cubs will be held among zoo members and donors in the coming weeks.
For updates on their progress and when public viewings will be available, visit the Werribee Open Range Zoo website or follow their social media channels.
