In addition to celebrating the new year, the zoo community is also celebrating the birth of a litter of cheetahs.
The Saint Louis Zoo is reportedly the only zoo in North America to have a cheetah who has given birth to a record-breaking litter of eight cubs.
“Mother and cubs are doing well and will remain in their private, indoor maternity den behind the scenes at River’s Edge for the next several months,” the zoo wrote on their Facebook page.
The mamma cheetah, who is named Bingwa, had three boys and five girls on Nov. 26 at the zoo’s River’s Edge Cheetah Breeding Center.
“In over 430 litters documented by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), this is the first time a female cheetah has produced and reared on her own a litter of eight cubs at a zoo,” the zoo the Charlotte Observer. “The average litter size is three to four cubs.”
Four-year-old Bingwa was actually being borrowed from the Wildlife Safari in Winston, Ore. and the cubs’ father, 9-year-old Jason, came from the White Oak Conservation Center in Yulee, Fla.
The two were paired together to increase genetic diversity in the captive population under the Cheetah Species Survival Plan.
It will be several months before the cheetah cubs are put on display at the zoo.
The Saint Louis Zoo has had more than 50 cubs born at their zoo and has been the main cheetah breeding and research center since 1974.
Cheetahs, which are the fastest land animal and can run up to 70 mph., hail from Africa and Asia.
They are currently considered to be endangered since they are frequently hunted for killing livestock.
Last spring the Smithsonian’s National Zoo had 12 cheetah cubs from two different moms who gave birth within the same week. One of the mothers had five healthy cubs and the other had seven, however, two of her small cubs died.
The pictures of Bingwa ended up going viral and were shared more than 43,000 times on KSDK News’ Facebook page.
People were absolutely in love with those furry faces.
“These babies will be given tender care and love,” one Facebook commenter wrote. “They give people the opportunity to see what we so blessed to see in the Serengeti because of you. Can’t help but share the picture of one we say while we were in Africa. The Duma is a beautiful animal.”
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