Caring For Big Cats Amid The Coronavirus Pandemic
ASHFORD, KENT - APRIL 29: A white tiger named Baikal is seen within it's enclosure at the Big Cat Sanctuary on April 29, 2020 in Ashford, Kent. The coronavirus and the subsequent lockdown measures have also meant that Big Cat Sanctuary has closed its doors to the public, who provide portion of its income via pre-booked guests and from overnight accommodation in their wooden lodges, priced at £800-900 per night. The sanctuary has seen income disappear while the cats continue to need food, shelter and veterinary care. The government has announced that they would offer a financial bail-out to help meet the continuing expenses for zoos and sanctuaries while they are closed to visitors. Now in its sixth week, the lockdown has seen all but key workers told to remain at home, with many businesses temporarily closed. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who returned to Downing Street this week after recovering from Covid-19, said the country needed to continue its lockdown measures to avoid a second spike in infections. Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

After the birth of four Bengal tiger cubs, zookeepers at the National Zoo of Cuba situated in Havana celebrated not only for a successful birth but also the inclusion of a rare white tiger in the delivery.

The zoo management shared the successful birth of the four striped cubs on March 12 came after two decades of trying to add up on the number of the endangered animal. The four cubs were born to Fiona and her mate named Garfield.

According to Aljazeera, Angel Cordero, a specialist on tigers at the National Zoo in Cuba shared that the birth was a normal delivery. The tiger specialist also mentioned that Fiona started already to carry out her role as a mother.

Meanwhile, the four cubs have not yet been named and even their genders were not yet revealed.

Moreover, wildlife experts say that white tigers are a genetic variation of the better-known orange Bengal tigers. They also added that thousands of tigers once roamed the forests in Bangladesh, Nepal, and India.

However, wildlife experts were saddened about the plummet in their numbers, which is currently at only 2,500. Actions by humans like poaching , deforestation, and over-hunting have been heavily considered as the root cause of the plummet, Reuters reported.

In addition, Cordero mentioned that all births in the zoo are important but they give more importance to birth when an animal is already in danger of extinction is born. The tiger specialist added that giving more importance to birth means that you are not only helping the survival of its life but also the species itself to not disappear from the world.

The tiger specialist in the National Zoo in Cuba also emphasized that despite the little resources given they were able to extend the species. Cordero also cited that Cuba is just a small country which is why they are so happy on their involvement in anything that is good for the world.

Furthermore, out of nine tiger subspecies in the world, three of them fell extinct last century. Scientists believe that the fourth would be the South China tiger, which is already considered functionally extinct.

Life of a White tiger

Normally, white tigers are considered as a separate species or popularly as an albino, but white tigers are just simply Bengal tigers. A white tiger can be included in the offspring of a Bengal tiger if both tigers carry a recessive gene that controls the coat color of the breed, Crown Ridge Tigers reported.

The entire captive white tiger population originated from one single white tiger. But in order to retain the said recessive gene, breeders and zoos must continue inbreeding father to daughter, father to granddaughter.

But on the other hand, inbreeding does not always end up successfully. The process can also cause several genetic problems. Most of the white tiger cubs born suffered from these abnormalities. Breeders and zoos usually disposed of these white tigers because they are malformed during birth.

WATCH:Rare white tiger among new cubs born at Havana zoo - Reuters