Four Philadelphia-Born Lion Cubs About To Make Their Public Debut
By John McDevitt
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Starting tomorrow, visitors to the Philadelphia Zoo will be able to get their first look at the four lion cubs born at the zoo in June.
It's been 18 years since lion cubs were born at the Philadelphia Zoo. Tajiri, the four-year-old mother, gave birth to four cubs in June.
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The father, five-year-old Makini, has yet to meet them. He is being kept in another enclosure for now.
Big cat keeper Jennifer Robinson says isolation is part of the lion's natural behavior during the birth process.
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"They are the only large social cats," Robinson explains. "They do live in a pride, but once the female is ready to give birth she will actually leave the pride and she will seek out her own den and give birth in a private area. And once they reach the age of six to eight weeks, they are old enough and will rejoin the pride again."
The cubs' genders are not yet known.
There was a public naming contest over the summer for the cubs. The winning names are Mali, Kataba, Sabi, and Msinga. Keepers are able to tell them apart by their individual markings.
