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London has got three new-ish residents that we think you should meet. Disclaimer: they can get a bit catty at rush hour but they're irresistibly cute and always up for a good time.
Inca, Zac and Crispin are three critically endangered Sumatran tiger cub triplets who were born at the ZSL London Zoo in June. Since then, they've been nameless as the zookeepers determined their sex and trained them up for life in the conservation centre. The three names were decided by the Zoological Society of London, by way of an auction at the charity’s fundraising gala last month (said gala raised more than £50,000 for ZSL’s conservation work.)
The Sumatran tiger, whose habitat is the forests and jungles of Indonesia, is the rarest and smallest subspecies of tiger in the world. As a critically endangered species, the Sumatran tiger faces threats of poaching, habitat loss and human conflict. In the 1970s, there were estimated to be 1,000 of them in the wild but today’s figures say that there are fewer than 400 remaining worldwide. The roarsome trio are part of a global conservation effort to protect their species through a collaborative breeding programme amongst European zoos.
ZSL London Zoo tiger keeper Martin O ‘Sullivan said: ‘Inca loves her food and is always ready to defend a bit of chicken from her brothers if necessary.’
‘Crispin is a little quieter than his two boisterous siblings, and is definitely a mummy’s boy - preferring to snuggle up to [mother] Gaysha in the sun - while Zac is the largest cub and loves playfighting with his sister, getting an early start on developing their hunting skills.’
O ‘Sullivan added: ‘We can tell the trio apart by the stripe patterns on their faces, which are unique to every tiger - we’re delighted that all three have now been officially named.’
Fancy some transport news? Bond Street station on the Elizabeth line is finally open.
All the London landmarks targeted by Just Stop Oil Protesters so far.