Birth of Cheetah cub in Suffolk brings hope for vulnerable species

Africa Alive has welcomed the furry cub to the park.

Author: Abi SimpsonPublished 30th Sep 2021

The first Cheetah cub in ten years has been born at Africa Alive in Suffolk, bringing hope to a species considered vulnerable in the wild.

Keepers say they were overjoyed to discover the newborn cub with first-time mother Kilima, on the morning of the 1st August.

After spending a few weeks settling in, the cub has been vaccinated, microchipped, and sexed by keepers - which revealed she is female.

The 8-week old cub and her Mum will gradually be introduced into the paddock over the next few days, and will then go on show to the public from the 2nd October.

People are also being invited in choosing a name for the new arrival.Mike Woolham, Head of Living Collections at the Zoological Society of East Anglia, said: “Kilimia is doing very well, she’s very protective as you would expect but has so far proved to be an excellent mum.

"She’s very attentive to the needs of her offspring and we are very much looking forward to sharing our latest new arrival with visitors to the park.

"Cheetahs housed in zoos in Europe as part of the EAZA breeding programme provide a potential safety net for the wild population, not to mention acting as ambassadors for their wild counterparts and enabling all zoos to raise awareness of their plight in the wild.”

Threatened by habitat loss and hunting, as few as 5,000 cheetahs remain in Africa, while it is estimated there are few as 60 in Asia. The species is listed as ‘vulnerable’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

The Zoological Society of East Anglia, the charity which runs Africa Alive in Suffolk and sister park Banham Zoo in Norfolk, works with the EAZA breeding programme to conserve the populations of endangered animals, including cheetahs. The programme coordinator issues pairing recommendations for zoos all over Europe based on the genetic importance of potential offspring.

The cub’s birth has been a careful plan two years in the making, with Kilima first moved to Banham Zoo in 2019 in the hope she would breed with a different male, Shaka. When this did not result in a pregnancy, a new recommended pairing with male Dayo was issued, and he was introduced to Kilima at Banham Zoo in March 2021. Kilima now resides at Africa Alive, where she is hard at work being an attentive mother to her young cub. The two now live next door to Shaka.

Haylee Parker, Team Leader at Africa Alive, said: “Kilima was one of the last cubs to be born here at Africa Alive and has been housed at both Africa Alive and Banham Zoo, so it is amazing that she has now given birth at the park as well and is the very proud mum to our newest addition.

"She has been easy to work with since giving birth, albeit a little feisty from time to time, and it looks like the cub may well follow in mum’s footsteps as she has been copying Kilima with a few feisty moments of her own!”

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