Rostov-on-Don, Russia (Web Desk): A liger cub was born, an offspring of a lion and a tiger named ‘Tsar’.
Tsar – whose name is a throwback to the Russian emperors of centuries past.
A researcher at Moscow’s Darwin Museum of natural history, Dmitry Miloserdov explained, “Hybrids like this are extremely rare – and generally they are weaker than lion cubs or ordinary young tigers, but if you take good care of them, they can grow up and live a long time. However, the male ligers are born sterile.
The Zoo Chief Erik Airapetyan said, “We don’t leave him in a cage – it’s too cold outside. We keep him here with us – he even sleeps in our bed.”
The Zoo Chief was on tour in southern Russia’s Rostov-on-Don region when Tsar was born on November 11, with the yellowish-brown fur of a lion cub but covered in black stripes.
Airapetyan and colleagues are feeding him with goat’s milk, and so far, he drinks about a liter a day.
According to Airapetyan, the zoo’s only tigress, Tsar’s mother Princess had a difficult birth and has been unable to suckle him. She has given birth to a total of three liger cubs, but only Tsar has survived. He has an unlimited milk supply, sleeps 16 hours a day, and plays whenever he wants.
Airapetyan told, at two and a half months old and weighing five kilograms he is “still too small and fragile” to meet his parents.
Airapetyan expressed, “We’re very proud of our little treasure, a unique our stripy lion, and we’re all taking care of him”.
According to the zoo director, “Princess and Caesar have occupied neighboring cages for years and “are used to one another”.
