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Headline: Edinburgh Zoo’s lion cubs named

Caption: The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s Edinburgh Zoo has today (12 Nov) announced the names of their three Asiatic lion cubs as Mitaali, Keshari and Kushanu in tribute to the Gir forest in western India where the species is found. Keepers at the wildlife conservation charity drew up a shortlist of names for the 13-week old female and two male cubs and put them to a public vote to encourage Edinburgh locals to engage with the endangered species. Andrew Laing, one of the zoo’s senior animal keepers, said, “We’re thrilled over 1,000 people voted to name our adorable lion cubs. “Conservation is at the heart of what we do and it is fantastic to see our cubs helping to raise awareness of the threats Asiatic lions face in the wild.” Recent estimates of the wild population of Asiatic lions range between 350 and 650 individuals, with threats including poaching, habitat destruction, conflict with humans and a declining number of prey animals. “Shortlisted by our keepers, the names are Gujarati, from the Gir forest in Gujarat, western India. Asiatic lions previously existed across southwest Asia but are now only found in the Gir forest,” said Andrew. “Our little girl is now called Mitaali, which means graceful or beautiful, and our two boys are Keshari, meaning lion or saffron, and Kushanu which means fire.” The winning group of names received 39% of the public vote, beating Sikara, Manushri and Kunwar which came in second with 37%, and Shafali, Trusanu and Chandu which received 24%. The cubs have started to explore outdoors but are still spending much of their time inside. Indoor viewing remains closed to the public to allow the family some peace and quiet.

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