Photo: The Big Cat Santuary
The Big Cat Sanctuary has added a stunning new member to its feline family!
On Thursday, the organizationannounced the birthof a rare snow leopard. The male cub was born on Sept. 15 to parents Laila and Yarko as part of the European Endangered Species Breeding Programme.
“We are exceptionally proud to announce the birth of a snow leopard cub to Laila and Yarko at The Big Cat Sanctuary as part of the European Endangered Species Breeding Programme,” Lynn Whitnall, a trustee for The Big Cat Sanctuary, said in the facility’s recent release. “We know that our ‘little cub’ will raise vital awareness and funds for her counterparts in the wild, and we will continue to support The Snow Leopard Trust out in the field.”
The Big Cat Santuary
The facility also shared aYouTube videoas part of the cub’s birth announcement, featuring clips of the snow leopard cuddling up to Laila — who is also mom to two other male cubs, Koshi and Khumbu, born in 2019. The new cub is described as “full of attitude and isn’t afraid of anything or anyone.”
Snow leopards arecurrently listedas “vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List, with about 4,080 to 6,500 estimated to be living in the wild today.
“They are highly threatened in the wild due to poaching for their fur and the traditional medicine trade,” The Big Cat Sanctuary said in their release. “The breeding programme will help boost the captive population of Snow leopards which gives hope to this vulnerable species if they ever go extinct or critically-endangered in the wild.”
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The facility shared that Yarko is currently separated from Laila and the cub. The plan is to reintroduce the snow leopards as a family in the future.
source: people.com
