Two tiger cubs die within 3 days at Delhi zoo

Two tiger cubs have died within three days at the Delhi zoo, officials said on Monday, just a week after the birth of six Bengal tiger cubs — the largest litter recorded at the facility in two decades.

The cubs were born to a seven-year-old tigress, Aditi, on August 4 between 9 am and 11 am. This was her first litter since arrival from the Gorewada rescue centre in Nagpur. The zoo now has four surviving cubs, which are under round-the-clock CCTV and manual monitoring, Zoo Director Sanjeet Kumar said.

One cub, the smallest of the litter, died inside the enclosure on the morning of August 8. Another, which was weak and unable to feed from its mother, was moved to the zoo hospital on August 9 night, but died the following night despite treatment.

“Supplements are being given to the mother to support milk production. The remaining cubs are being closely observed and are feeding well,” Kumar said.

Before the new births, the zoo housed six white tigers and seven Royal Bengal tigers. In 2023, tigress Siddhi — also from Gorewada — gave birth to five cubs, marking the first successful Bengal tiger birth at the zoo in nearly 18 years, though only two survived. The last litter of six Bengal tigers at the zoo was in 2005, with two surviving.

An official said survival rate in such large litters is generally not 100 per cent.

The Delhi Zoo, which has housed tigers since its inauguration on November 1, 1959, is a designated centre for tiger conservation and breeding under the Central Zoo Authority’s conservation breeding programme launched in 2010.