White tigress Meera gives birth to 3 cubs at Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior Zoo

White tigress Meera delivered three cubs—one white and two Royal Bengal—at Gwalior Zoo on Sunday. The mother and cubs are healthy, increasing the zoo's tiger population to ten, which includes four white and six Royal Bengal tigers.

A white tigress named 'Meera' has given birth to three cubs at Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior Zoo (Gandhi Zoological Park) on Sunday afternoon, an official said. Of these three cubs, one is a white tiger while the other two are yellow (Royal Bengal) tiger cubs.

With the new additions, the total number of tigers at the zoo has increased to 10, comprising four white tigers and six Royal Bengal tigers. The overall count includes four males, three females, and three cubs.

Cubs and Mother Healthy

"A white female tiger Meera at Gwalior Zoo gave birth to three cubs on Sunday afternoon which include one white tiger and two yellow Royal Bengal tigers. In the primary checkup all the three cubs and the mother tigress are completely healthy and the mother tigress is continuously feeding the cubs," said Gaurav Parihar, Zoo curator at Gandhi Zoological Park.

Gwalior Zoo's Breeding and Exchange Program

He further stressed that the Gwalior Zoo also provided various tigers to other zoos across the nation, receiving other animals in exchange under the Animal Exchange Program guided by the central authority.

"Tigress Meera herself was born right here at the Gwalior Zoo to a white tigress who had been brought from Delhi and since then, she has continued to give birth to cubs here at this facility. The Gwalior Zoo has provided around 21-22 tigers and tigress to other zoos across India and receives other animals in exchange under the Animal Exchange Program guided by central authority," Parihar said.

Breeding Strategy

He also said, "Currently, the Zoo has four white tigers and six yellow Royal Bengal tigers, totaling ten tigers. We generally keep fewer white tigers than that of yellow tigers as the breeding strategy involves cross-mating white tigers with Royal Bengal tigers to ensure a healthy generation, avoiding inbreeding by managing brother-sister pairings."

Post-Natal Care

As of now, tigress Meera is being fed a light diet including chicken, chicken soup, eggs, and milk to support nursing her cubs, the Zoo curator added. (ANI)

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