JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Meet Mina, Machli and Beppy — at just 3-months-old, they’ve already made history at the Jacksonville Zoo as the first Malayan tigers born in captivity.
Zoo President and CEO Jeff Ettling says adding the three cubs that were born in November 2023 to their 'Land of the Tiger' exhibit is helping with animal conservation not only locally, but around the world.
“So, the work that we support in Indonesia helps with the on-the-ground conservation. tigers from Malaysian Tigers to other tigers and other species of animals that occur in that region,”
You may be wondering, why did it take four months for the cubs to make their official zoo debut?
Well, Tizerah Nichols who is a senior animal care specialist, says the cubs' move-in date wasn’t up to zookeepers, but instead, the decision is up to the triplets' mom named 'Cinta.'
"It's a lot of physical exertion running around," Nichols told First Coast News. "You know, their mom would probably be very protective of those next steps in the wild, so we just have to allow Cinta to do those same things in this setting here."
Although the tiger cubs were timid at first during a media availability session on Thursday, they now are exploring their new home for all of the public to see and learn a little bit more about protecting endangered animals.
“To be able to help with population sustainability, I think that our guests are gonna be able to see what the Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens is doing not just for tigers, but for all species,” Ettling said. "Everything we do is to help better animals out in the wild. You know, to educate our guests that conservation is not an animal or plant problem, it’s a people problem."
To see the baby tigers yourself, the Jacksonville Zoo is open every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.