Lion Cubs Named
Posted at 2:07 pm June 15, 2006 by Marcia Redding
On Saturday, our lion cub pair here at the Wild Animal Park’s Lion Camp will be one month old. They continue to grow and thrive and are becoming more mobile. They are coordinated enough now to play clumsily with enrichment items, each other, and mother Oshana’s tail on occasion. Today during one of the cub’s active periods they each in turn explored a flattened cardboard box given to Oshana as an enrichment item. For some reason known only to her, Oshana proceeded to drag the box along the floor, giving the babies ” toboggan rides” until they tumbled off. Eventually she ended the game by sitting on the box.
The biggest news is that, finally, our cubs have names. The male cub, previously called ” cub A,” will be known as Bakari, meaning ” one of noble promise” in Swahili. The little female, dubbed ” cub B,” will be called Abena, which means ” born on Tuesday” – which they certainly were!
As the cubs become more active, we are seeing two very different personalities emerge. Little Abena is the go-getter; much more active than her brother, Mom is always having to keep track of her expeditions into the far reaches of their off-exhibit bedroom area, and often goes to retrieve the baby when she gets too far away. Brother Bakari is a sleepy boy: he sleeps for long periods of time, wakes to nurse, toddles around and plays a bit, then back to sleep. The cubs are different in appearance, as well. Bakari is larger and is a much lighter color than his sister. Abena is darker, smaller, and has more spots than her brother. The big achievement for this week was learning to climb over the 6-inch (15-centimeter) threshold between rooms without falling over; Abena figured it out first, with brother Bakari not far behind.
We are thrilled at the progress the little ones are making, and are especially proud of Oshana, who continues to be an exemplary mother. We all look forward to future milestones in their lives as they become healthy, beautiful members of the pride.
Marcia Redding is a senior mammal keeper at the Wild Animal Park.
Note: The lion cubs cannot be viewed by the public yet. We’ll keep you posted!
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June 15th, 2006 at 2:27 pm
Yippee!
The picture of the cubs is adorable. I can’t wait to see more pictures posted in the coming months! Is it possible to post a webcam of the lion babies, so that we can see them just like Su Lin?
Thanks for the update and please keep us posted!
June 15th, 2006 at 3:03 pm
Marcia, thank you so much for the update. The cubs are beautiful and so many of us are eagerly awaiting further good news!
June 15th, 2006 at 4:00 pm
The cubs look SO cute! I love their names. I hope the public will be able to see them by August, because that’s when I’m going to the San Diego Zoo. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Editor’s note: We hope you’ll go to the Wild Animal Park too, because that’s where the lion cubs live. ; )
June 15th, 2006 at 5:43 pm
They are ADORABLE! I can hardly wait to see them. Thank you so much for the detailed account of their personalities, activities and progress. You cannot post too many photos or accounts of these precious cubs.
June 15th, 2006 at 6:25 pm
Oh YAY! My heart burst with happiness when I saw these two cuties…and boy are they CUTE!!! Abena is a bright-eyed little beauty…and Bakari is a sleepy little fuzzball. Seeing them so healthy and happy just melts my heart…and somehow, I think of little Koza, and I feel comforted and peaceful. Grow strong little ones! Can’t wait to see more updates. Thanks for sharing with us, Marcia! I can’t imagine how happy the Zoo family must be…
June 16th, 2006 at 5:19 am
Soooooo cute!!!!!! I want to rub my face in that soft, warm baby fur!
June 16th, 2006 at 5:54 am
These cubs are darling – of course. (I think feline babies are among the cutest things ever created.) I am so glad that their birth was uncomplicated and that they are being cared for by their mother. I love the image of her taking them for a ride on the cardboard box – I wish I could have seen that. I like their names. Please keep us updated on their progress. Thank you for the article.
June 16th, 2006 at 6:02 am
Yeah!!!! Thanks, Marcia – been waiting for news on these two. What cute names. And you go, Abena – girls rule, boys drool – LOL!!!!!! Just kidding, Bakari – love you tons, too!! Ditto to Cindy – the picture is tooooo cute! Can’t wait for more. You all are so lucky – you get to see things that may never happen again – the toboggan ride, for example. What incredible memories all of you must have – you’re the envy of all of us. Thanks again.
June 16th, 2006 at 6:52 am
Yes…. soooo excited to get to see a picture of the cubs!! I’ve also asked if there is any chance of a webcam, and have yet to hear of anything on the site. I think we would love it oh so much! Thank You so much for putting up their pictures, and I love their names!!
June 16th, 2006 at 8:26 am
When will the lion cubs be on exhibit? We can hardly wait.
June 16th, 2006 at 9:42 am
Lainie, sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner. Unfortunately, Lion Camp is not set up for a webcam right now. I know how frustrated everyone must be, waiting to see the cubs. I promise we will do our best to exhibit them as soon as possible. Until then, I will add frequent updates and more pics as they become available. Thanks everyone for your patience!
June 16th, 2006 at 3:02 pm
Abena and Bakari–what great names! I am one of many onlookers who look forward to learning more as the cubs continue to unfold. New life is fun and fragile, and none of us want to miss a single beat! Thanks for dedicating moments of your busy work schedules to provide photos and information.
June 16th, 2006 at 3:09 pm
Marcia, thank you so much for telling us of their names! And the story about the box playfulness is adorable. May God bless those babies…Bakari and Abena.
June 17th, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Marcia, Thanks for the update. I can hardly wait to see them in person, they are just way too cute and adorable.
Hope to see more pictures of them while we wait for their first appearance at the Lion Camp….Oshana sounds like she is being a great Mom and doing great for a first-time Mom. Way to go, Oshana–you have beautiful babies…
June 20th, 2006 at 4:36 pm
It’s so nice to see pictures to go along with your descriptions of the new cubs. I can’t wait to go visit them at the lion camp. Do you have any tentative timetables for introduction to the public areas of the lion camp or other members of the pride? You’d mentioned before some interaction between the viewing screen with papa and Mena. I can’t wait to visit them on display at the WAP, and I can’t wait for your next post, I’m hoping to maybe get news of when they might be exploring new areas where they will be visible to the public. Also, I’m sure it’s premature, but how long do cubs generally live with their birth pride in the wild? I seem to remember that a pride only has one adult male and am wondering how long little Bakari will be considered a baby? I asked before and I know you have lots to do besides read these postings, but has any discussion gone on about whether these cubs will be staying at the WAP or being transferred to other institutions as part of the species survival plan?
June 23rd, 2006 at 1:59 pm
Marcia, thank you so much for your wonderful description of these lovely cubs! You must be so happy and proud to see them grow healthy and happy! What a great job you have….Congratulations!
June 23rd, 2006 at 1:59 pm
Thank you SO much, Marcia, for the great descriptions and word pictures of our new babies. I could just see them being dragged around by Oshana and wondering why the ground was moving like that! I’m sure they felt safe though; Oshana is such a natural mommie. I can’t wait to get down there to see them and look so forward to your updates on how they’re doing.
June 23rd, 2006 at 3:08 pm
Thank you so, so much for the update, the photos, and their beautiful names.
My heart just swells when I see that they are healthy and happy and thriving.
Wonderful babies!!!
June 23rd, 2006 at 4:07 pm
These two little ” angels” are just too cute and their names are beautiful!!! Will they be up for ” adoption” like Cairo and Koza were and if so, I will adopt them as I did Cairo and Koza. I haven’t seen anything on them. What is their status??? I can’t wait to see them on webcam. I know that these cute bundle of joys will be in good hands and given the best of care in your wonderful facility. GOD BLESS THEM BOTH and the people that will be taking care of Bakari and Abena…..
June 23rd, 2006 at 4:21 pm
I am so excited to see your new baby lions. The picture is so cute. Can’t wait to see how they grow.
June 23rd, 2006 at 5:07 pm
wow that is cool and they are so cute
June 25th, 2006 at 3:39 pm
Marcia, the news of babies is alway exciting and the real excitement will unfold when they are to be seen! Looking forward to the day. They’re just so cute!
June 26th, 2006 at 9:55 am
It is so GREAT to see lion cubs back in the picture !!!!!!!!!! Grow strong little ones, we’ll be watching out for you both.
June 26th, 2006 at 3:45 pm
Hmmm… I do believe it’s time for a lion cubs update. Can’t wait to see them – please let us know how they are growing and when they will be on display. Thanks!
June 28th, 2006 at 2:24 pm
wow they are sooo cute! i really am an animal fanatic and they look really, really healthy.
October 26th, 2006 at 5:25 pm
I love lions. I hope you named it already.
May 10th, 2007 at 10:14 am
sooooo cute
March 12th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
i am doing a report on lions and visit ur site alot for info. the lion cubs r sooo cute.
April 19th, 2009 at 9:51 am
I LOVE LIONS
November 11th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
lion are my favorite animals in the world i love lion they are so cute the little ones are on school we are talking about it thats why i came here an visit this web.i love lion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!#1