Rare tiger cubs born at Knowsley Safari named
They are already ten times the size they were at birth!
Last updated 5th Nov 2025
The two rare tiger cubs born at Knowsley Safari earlier this year have been named!
Akira, a female Amur tiger cub, and Ozo, a male Amur tiger cub, were born in July - they have been checked over by vets and given their inoculations.
The latest health checks reveal they are already ten times the size they were at birth!
Six-year-old mum Yuki is bonding with the cubs, with seven-year-old dad Makari staying in the neighbouring habitat.
Animal keepers say both cubs are quite adventurous and enjoy exploring new areas each day, with Yuki keeping them within sight most of the time and carrying them back to their dens when they wander too far!
Pete Johnson, Animal Team Manager - Carnivores, at Knowsley Safari, said:
"Initially it was the male cub Ozo that was a little braver and first to leave the cubbing den. He is also often first to instigate play-fighting with his sister, who is a little more cautious and calculated but still very active and playful.
"Each week they discover new areas of their habitat to play in. From quite an early age they enjoyed playing in the shallow streams and last week they began climbing on the logs, but there are still a lot of areas left for them to explore."
The arrival of the cubs marks a significant milestone in protecting the species' future - they are classified as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Pete adds:
"As expected, and is totally natural, mum Yuki is extremely protective of her cubs. Yuki has been given the choice of where to den and where to take the cubs since they were born.
"She kept them in the cubbing box for the first four to five weeks until they were big enough to walk around on their own, then she made a den among some small trees in their outside habitat.
"Since then, they’ve spent the majority of their time there and mum is comfortable letting the cubs explore with people watching.
"The arrival of Akira and Ozo has been a very proud and exciting time for the Safari and we couldn’t be happier with the way all of the tigers are adapting."
This is the first time since 1996 that an Amur tiger has been born at Knowsley Safari.
There are only around 500 Amur tigers left in the wild.