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#SURVEILLANCE DRONE The Pentagon released footage of what it says was a Russian aircraft pouring fuel on a US Air Force surveillance drone and clipping its propeller in international air space over the Black Sea
#SECURITY The PSNI said hundreds of specialist police officers from England and Wales will be needed in Northern Ireland as part of a massive security operation during a visit by US President Joe Biden.
#NORTH KOREA South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Japan looking to open a “new chapter” in relations hours after Pyongyang fired a long-range ballistic missile.
Fota Wildlife Park has a new resident.
It announced today that Jambi, a critically endangered Sumatran tiger, arrived on 21 February from Heidelberg Zoo in Germany and is now settled into her new habitat in the Asian Sanctuary following a transition period.
Jambi was relocated to the Co Cork wildlife park as part of a recommended move from the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria’s (EAZA) endangered breeding programme (EEP) for Sumatran tigers.
Tigers are often moved between parks to breed with different mates in order to avoid inbreeding and to maintain as much genetic diversity in the EEP breeding programme as possible.
The park has been involved in the programme since 2014, when it received its first Sumatran tigers, a male Denar and a female Dourga. This pair then produced two offspring, a female named Dharma in 2017 and a male named Dash in 2019.
As part of the programme, male tiger Denar transferred to Cottbus Zoo in Germany last month to breed with a female Sumatran tiger there.
Jambi has come to Fota Wildlife Park as part of a recommended move from the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria’s (EAZA) endangered breeding programme (EEP) for Sumatran tigers, which Fota Wildlife Park has been involved in since 2014. pic.twitter.com/HbjdhqIsmg
— Fota Wildlife Park (@fotawildlife) March 16, 2023
Female tiger Dourga moved to West Midlands Safari Park last year, and her male offspring Dash, born at Fota, moved to Chester Zoo on the same day. Dash then mated with the resident female Kasarna which resulted in the birth of two cubs on 7 January.
The Sumatran tiger is one of the rarest subspecies of tigers in the world and was classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2008.
It is estimated that fewer than 350 individuals remain in the wild.
“Introducing a new tiger to the current streak is a very specialised process that requires a high degree of training and husbandry. At first, the new tiger must be allowed to acquaint itself with their new environment,” Julien Fonteneau, Fota’s lead ranger Julien Fonteneau said.
“Jambi was quiet for the first few days, but she is now a lot more confident, and we have started tong feeding her and doing some basic training. We introduce the tigers through the mesh during this stage, and the three are getting on well.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Jambi to Fota Wildlife Park,” said Animal care manager said the park are “thrilled to welcome Jambi”.
“The animal Rangers are working hard to ensure that she is experiencing a seamless, safe and comfortable transition. The welfare of any animal arriving into Fota is a top priority for us as they continue their critical journey as part of the successful endangered breeding programmes we have been involved in over the past 40 years.
“We hope Jambi’s arrival will help educate our visitors about species and biodiversity conservation.”
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