Emmanuel Thomas I DPA, August 04, 2023
HANOVER – Three rare Barbary lion triplets born at the Hanover Zoo in Germany were given names on Friday after a jury sorted through more than 1,700 suggestions.
The two female cubs were named Zuri and Alani while the male cub was named Tayo.
“The names all sound very nice and are well-differentiated from each other. That helps us when we want to address and call the young animals individually,” said animal keeper Marcel Rehse.
The lion Zara-Sophie gave birth to the triplets in February.
Originally native to North Africa, Barbary lions are now extinct in the wild. The lions are also known as North African, Atlas or Egyptian lions.
For more than a decade, the lions have been bred in Hanover Zoo and elsewhere. The triplets are the third litter of Barbary lion cubs born at the Hanover Zoo.
“They have grown quite a bit and now weigh about 30 kilograms,” said Rehse.
