A Royal Bengal tiger and white tigress have been moved into the same enclosure at the Delhi Zoo (PTI)
While you were busy tracking every aspect of
Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja's big fat
Bollywood wedding, two tigers at the Delhi Zoo secretly "tied the knot." The zoo confirmed today that the big cats were "married" in a novel attempt to get the yellow-striped Royal Bengal to mate with the white tiger and produce healthier mixed offspring.
Five-year-old Karan, the Royal Bengal tiger and three-year-old Nirbhaya, the white tigress were moved into the same enclosure after zoo officials noticed a certain "chemistry" building up between them, reported
The New Indian Express.
"They were introduced to each other two days ago, in a private enclosure... we wanted to see if they have chemistry, will they fight or not. They sniffed each other and seem to get along," Renu Singh, the Delhi Zoo's director, told
The Indian Express. "Yesterday, we got them married."
The "mix-and-mate proposal" is the first to occur at the Delhi Zoo in nearly three decades.
"In the two days that they have been in the same enclosure, they have mated 15 times. So, our move has been successful. We are keeping strict vigil as much attention and care are required," Ms Singh told The New Indian Express.
The sight of the "newlyweds" thrilled visitors to the Delhi Zoo this week. But the big cats will eventually be separated and returned to their original enclosures.
"One could expect offsprings by wildlife week in October," a hopeful Ms Singh told
The Times Of India. "White tigers have been inbreeding and the Royal Bengal tiger will not only introduce the dominant gene, but also improve the genepool of the offsprings that can either be a white or a yellow tiger," she added.
The National Zoological Park is well-known for its rich breeding programmes. It has also participated in various exchange programmes by giving surplus animals to other zoos.
The tiger population at the Delhi Zoo has always drawn a sizeable crowd and zoo officials are trying hard to increase their numbers.
Spread across 176 acres of land, the Delhi Zoo is one of India's most spacious zoological parks. It is home to about 1,350 animals representing almost 130 species, and boasts a wide variety of indigenous and exotic birds. The zoo is also part of the conservation breeding programmes of the Central Zoo Authority.
(With inputs from PTI)Click for more
trending news