Animal births in Frankfurt: Zoo and mother Cinta are happy about two tiger cubs

So far, visitors can only marvel at them via a monitor: tiger cubs were born in Frankfurt Zoo last week. The Sumatran tiger Cinta gave birth three times, but according to the camera images, one animal was born lifeless. The two siblings, however, appear to be healthy and are being well cared for by their mother, according to the images and information from the zoo.

To give the animals some peace and quiet, the animal house, known as the Cat Jungle, is temporarily closed to visitors. However, the adult animals can be seen in the outdoor enclosure from time to time.

Their cute cuddly offspring will remain hidden from the public for the time being. As a new attraction, they will probably only attract an additional visitor to the zoo in two months. Tiger cubs are among the most effective new arrivals in zoos and are likely to bring an increase in visitors to Frankfurt in the spring.

"As is normal with tigers, the mother retreated to a protected place to give birth. Here at the zoo, this is called the whelping box," says zoo director Christina Geiger. "The little ones spend the first few weeks of their lives there. Trips into the enclosure are not expected until April. We will have to wait until then to determine the sexes of the two cubs."

The camera images from the whelping box show that Cinta gave birth to three cubs on the morning of February 20. The last cub, however, appeared lifeless. "Cinta was definitely interested in the third cub and kept licking it," reports zoo curator Johannes Köhler.

During the night, after it showed no signs of life, she ate it. "This is a completely natural and sensible behavior that can be observed in many animals," says Köhler. "Removing the dead body from the litter box is for hygiene reasons. In addition, its smell could attract enemies in nature," says Köhler, explaining the behavior.

This is not the first birth for the female tiger Cinta: There was great joy in June 2023 when Cinta and her partner Emas had their first offspring. It was only last October that the young tigers Raja and Rimba left the cat jungle to move to other zoos as part of the European breeding program. The breeding successes are not a given, as the two are older animals.

The Frankfurt births are a stroke of luck for the zoo population of the now rare Sumatran tigers, because Cinta in particular is very high in the ranking of breeding recommendations. Because this is only her second offspring, her lineage is underrepresented. Her children will help to maintain the genetic diversity of Sumatran tigers in human care.

The tiger subspecies that lives on Sumatra is extremely rare. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) estimates that there are a maximum of 400 animals currently living in their native habitat.

The Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) has been committed to protecting the lowland rainforests in the Bukit Tiga Puluh region of Sumatra since 1998. Many endangered species such as tigers, orangutans and elephants live there. With income from the voluntary conservation euro, which every visitor to Frankfurt can pay, the zoo also supports the work of the FZS on Sumatra.