‘Very exciting’: Woodland Park Zoo celebrates birth of 2 lion cubs
Jan 19, 2026, 5:29 PM
The Woodland Park Zoo just welcomed some new pride and joy.
Two South African lions were born — the zoo’s first birth of lions since 2014, the Woodland Park Zoo announced Friday.
“Very exciting,” KIRO host Jake Skorheim said on “The Jake and Spike Show” on KIRO Newsradio.
Both cubs are female, the zoo stated. They were born to first-time parents, mom Ilanga and dad Tandie.
The cubs are currently living in the off-view maternity den, where they can bond with their mom in comfortable surroundings.
The father is separated from the family until the mother and cubs are older, the zoo noted.
Jake quipped that the separation seemed unfair to the father.
“They take a little time away from the dad, which feels sexist to me,” he said. “They don’t let the dad be part of these little cubs’ lives, but I guess, for safety reasons. Can’t be because they hate the male lions. That’d be weird. But they have a little time away until they’re a little bit bigger, and then they can introduce them into the pride at the zoo.”
Martin Ramirez, Curator of Mammalogy at Woodland Park Zoo, stated, via the news release, that Ilanga is doing a “terrific job” as a first-time mother.
Animal care staff will be monitoring the behavior of the mom and cubs over the next few weeks.
Lion cubs, according to the zoo, are born blind and open their eyes within a week or two after birth. Veterinarians will check on the cubs every couple of weeks for weight monitoring, vaccinations, and blood and fecal samples.
A third-generation lineage at Woodland Park Zoo
Ilanga and Tandie represent the third-generation lineage at Woodland Park Zoo, according to the zoo.
“It’s a big win for the Lion Species Survival Plan gene pool, and we’re looking forward to establishing a new pride here and celebrating this incredible legacy of lions at Woodland Park Zoo,” Ramirez stated in the release.
African lions are considered vulnerable, with only 23,000 to 39,000 estimated to remain in the wild, the zoo noted. Their future remains uncertain as humans often kill them to protect livestock.
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Increasing the wild lion population
Woodland Park Zoo is working with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ African Lion Saving Animals From Extinction (SAFE) program to support conservation organizations working with communities living with lions.
The goal is to increase the number of lions in the wild by reinforcing viable, connected landscapes and supporting tolerant communities coexisting with African lions, the release stated.
The zoo’s website outlines ways people can help wild lions.
Visitors won’t be able to meet the cubs quite yet, officials noted. They’ll remain behind the scenes until they’re a bit older and temperatures stay above 50 degrees.
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