Death of tiger cub born at Chester Zoo

Jun 29 2011
by Jo Henwood, Chester Chronicle

CHESTER Zoo staff have expressed their sadness following the death of their new-born tiger cub.

The 11-day old cub was found dead in its enclosure yesterday morning (Wednesday, June 29).

A post-mortem will be carried out to determine the cause of death of the cub, who was born to Kirana on Saturday June 18 after a five-hour labour.

A spokesperson said: “Kirana was a first-time mum and her behaviour with the cub over the last few days gives us great hope for the future.

“We are sure you will join us in offering our sympathies to the carnivore team at this time.”

Zoo supporters have been posting messages of condolence on the zoo’s new Facebook site.

The baby Sumatran tiger was the zoo’s first tiger cub in more than two decades.

The cub’s father was four-year-old Fabi and this was also his first cub.

Sumatran tigers are the smallest of their species and are native to the Indonesian islands of Sumatra but are critically endangered in the wild. A pregnancy usually lasts around 105 days.

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