Asian lions in the UK

I have managed to find out some of the names of the Chester Asian Lion cubs. Here is the breeding history.

1994 2.1 Chandra (f) male names unknown
1996 3.0 names unknown
1997 1.3 Bella(f) Gita (f) Kamlesh (f) male name unknown
1998 2.1 Asaka (m) Masala (f) Naseek (m)
2000 0.1 did not survive
2007 2.0 Tejas (m) (1 did not survive) also an unknown number in February that did not survive.

In 1985 four female cubs (3 died) were born to a pair which later proved to be hybrids. The parents came from Zurich.
 
bongorob said:
I have managed to find out some of the names of the Chester Asian Lion cubs. Here is the breeding history.

1994 2.1 Chandra (f) male names unknown

In 1985 four female cubs (3 died) were born to a pair which later proved to be hybrids. The parents came from Zurich.
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'Chandra' was one of the males. He is the breeding male at Bristol where he arrived in 1996 via Cotswold WP (Bristol's female 'Moti' came from Helsinki)

I didn't know that Chester has had impure Asiatics too. I thought it was only Marwell... Do you know what happened to the Chester ones?
 
grantsmb said:
'Chandra' was one of the males. He is the breeding male at Bristol where he arrived in 1996 via Cotswold WP (Bristol's female 'Moti' came from Helsinki)

I didn't know that Chester has had impure Asiatics too. I thought it was only Marwell... Do you know what happened to the Chester ones?
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Thanks for correcting Chandra's sex, I could say it was a typing mistake, but I could also tell the truth and say I got it wrong.

Impure Asian Lions at Chester.

1984 1.1 arrived from Zurich
1985 0.4 (0.3 DNS) bred
1986 included in the listing for African Lion, of which 1.2 were exported. I suspect they were the impure specimens. I don't know where they were sent to.
 
bongorob said:
Thanks for correcting Chandra's sex, I could say it was a typing mistake, but I could also tell the truth and say I got it wrong.
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If you'd mentioned any other names I'd have been none the wiser. Its only that I 'know' Chandra being as he's at Bristol...
 
bongorob said:
Thanks for correcting Chandra's sex, I could say it was a typing mistake, but I could also tell the truth and say I got it wrong.

Impure Asian Lions at Chester.

1984 1.1 arrived from Zurich
1985 0.4 (0.3 DNS) bred
1986 included in the listing for African Lion, of which 1.2 were exported. I suspect they were the impure specimens. I don't know where they were sent to.
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I really hope they were fully sterilised ..! No need to have them re-enter Europe as unrelated lions :eek:
 
orang09 said:
wowot hnx for that do have the breeding history for london zoo lions aswell ?
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No I don't. The only thing I know about London is that a litter of 1.2 cubs was born 0n 26th January 1997, the mum was Ruchi and the farther was Jake (on short term loan from Chester). London's male Kamal was considered too young to breed that year.
 
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bongorob said:
The only thing I know about London is that a litter of 1.2 cubs was born 0n 26th January 1997, the mum was Ruchi and the farther was Jake (on short term loan from Chester). London's male Kamal was considered too young to breed that year.
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Kamal must have been a replacement male at London. The original male was called 'Arfur' He died at the quite young age of about five, but presumably had already bred by then. Ruchi was probably his original partner.

I presumed' Arfur' was some sort of exotic Indian name, until I discovered it derived from 'halfear' as he had part of an ear missing...
 
Cotswold Wildlife park said on their site last year that the Cotswold-born male now in London had just sired cubs there (2006). However there was no announcement by London that year suggesting that they didn't survive.
 
As for hybrid vigour,there was an article on the BBC website a while ago about how sickly subspecific hybrids were.I also seem to recall reading somewhere about African lions being turned loose in India,can anyone verify this?
 
Paulus said:
As for hybrid vigour,there was an article on the BBC website a while ago about how sickly subspecific hybrids were.I also seem to recall reading somewhere about African lions being turned loose in India,can anyone verify this?
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What do you mean by the phrase turned loose? As in released into the wild .. :confused: Please explain!
 
jelle said:
What do you mean by the phrase turned loose? As in released into the wild .. :confused: Please explain!
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Thats exactly what I meant.I can't remember where I saw it,but it was about a small number of male African lions released into the Gir forest.It may just be a rumour.
 
Indian Lions in the UK.

This thread seems to have gone quiet. A quick update has been given below;-

Bristol- 1.2 (Breeding pair plus female offspring)
Chester- 1.2 (Male is from Planckendael, females imported from Rotterdam)
Chessington- 1.1.
Cotswold- 1.1 (Non-breeding)
Dublin- 0.2 (Imported from Mulhouse)
Dudley- 1.2 (Things look good, seems to have gone quiet)
Edinburgh- 1.1 (New male arrived from Bristol)
Paignton- 1.1 (Had a 0.1 dns in 2011)
ZSL London- 1.4 (Breeding pair plus 0.1 from first litter and another 0.2)

The UK's population seems to be looking better than what it was, with new females arriving for possibly breeding at Chester, Dublin, Dudley, and a new male for Edinburgh, Jayendra (Kamal x Shiva).
 
Pertinax said:
I don't think its any secret now that Paignton's pair have finally produced a successful litter- of four cubs, all appear healthy- they should be going on show very shortly now.
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I only recently knew about this. Hopefully they will (all) survive. After three (?) litters they have finally produced some cubs. Good news for Paignton and Asian Lions in general.
 
Am I right in thinking Twycross used to have Asian lions, I have it in my zoo log, when did they leave/pass on?
 
JamesB said:
Am I right in thinking Twycross used to have Asian lions, I have it in my zoo log, when did they leave/pass on?
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Twycross last 2 Asian Lions were the 2 females now at Dudley.They were held in what is now the Striped Hyena enclosure.
 
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