Two Amur leopard cups have made their public debut at the award-winning Yorkshire Wildlife Park. The duo were born in May and have now been released into the main reserve where the public can see them.
They’ve both quickly discovered how to make full use of the huge climbing platforms and seem to be enjoying their time exploring. Senior Carnivore Ranger, Kate Borrington, revealed: “After sheltering in their den for two months, the leopard cubs received their vaccinations and were able to explore outside.
“They have been honing their climbing skills in the junior training reserves, where there are lots of small platforms and trees which they have been getting used to climbing. After careful monitoring, we noticed that they have been confidently climbing to the highest platforms and were ready for the main reserve at Leopard Heights, where the platforms are a lot higher.”
They are the second and third Amur leopards to be born in the world this year, according to the park. Their home, Leopard Heights, is designed as a purpose built breeding and reintroduction facility with 10m climbing towers and it won the 2013 BIAZA Award for Significant Advances in Husbandry and Welfare.
Kate continued: “Both cubs are enjoying exploring their new area and have already climbed to the highest points of the reserve. The female cub is very confident and sassy like her mother, Kristen. The male cub is a little more reserved, but both have settled in nicely.
“Kristen has previous experience being a mother, after welcoming Auckley in June 2023. She definitely has her work cut out with these two new playful cubs, but she is doing an excellent job. It is fascinating to watch them develop and we know that they will be a firm favourite amongst visitors.”
Yorkshire Wildlife Park said that the species are normally found in the forests of Russia and China and there are now believed to be less than 100 in the wild. The Wildlife Foundation charity, which is based at the park, has supported conservation efforts for the vulnerable species, including working with the WildCats Conservation Alliance which promotes breeding, population monitoring and habitat protection for Leopards.
You can see the adorable photos of the two leopard cubs exploring below. All photos have been supplied by Yorkshire Wildlife Park.