The Santa Barbara Zoo welcomed two young female African lions on Nov. 20 who they hope will breed with the zoo’s male lion, Chadwick. The 2-year old lionesses arrived last month from the National Zoo (Washington, D.C.) via Federal Express and completed the 30-day quarantine required of all new animals, officials say.
Named Kadi and Neema by their sponsors, the Dreier Family, the two will alternate on exhibit with Chadwick and Gingerbread, the zoo’s other female.
“Chadwick is getting older but his genes are still valuable,” said Julia McHugh. The pair produced only two cubs: Kiki (2004) now at Zoo Atlanta and Docha (2005), now living at the John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids, Mich. Only Kiki has had cubs.
Also making their debut were two fennec foxes – brothers named Bill and Andy – by donors Frank and Karen Harris. Native to the African desert, fennec foxes are the world’s smallest and have distinctive large ears, which allow them to hear prey and also dissipate heat, much like elephants’ ears do. The fennec foxes are in the exhibit adjacent to the lions.
Meanwhile, construction continues on the Discovery Pavilion, which will provide indoor space for zoo education programs and community needs. struax@syvjournal.com