Three Malayan tiger cubs ready for debut at zoo

Three Malayan tiger cubs at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens are ready to make their grand entrance for the public this week.

The zoo said the three cubs, named Machli, Beppy and Mina, will join their mother, Cinta, in the Land of the Tiger habitat on Friday. The cubs made an appearance in the habitat Thursday to get them acclimated to their new surroundings. Once in the habitat, they will have their choice of roaming indoors or outdoors.

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The zoo said the cubs might be shy at first so visitors might not see them roaming around their habitat until they are more comfortable with their surroundings. Until this week, the only way people could view the tigers was on a live video feed from the zoo.

If the name Mina sounds familiar, it’s because the public named her during a contest that ended in January. Machli and Beppy had already been named by donors.

The cubs were born at the zoo in November and have been mostly bonding with their mother inside a smaller enclosure. At the time of their birth, the zoo said the three were a significant contribution to a dwindling population. It was estimated that fewer than 150 Malayan tigers are left in the wild.