LUCKNOW: With the death of a three-day-old lion cub of choking on Thursday, a total of four newly-born lion cubs perished at the Etawah Safari Park within a week, said officials.
Lioness Sona gave birth to five cubs last week. While the first birth took place on July 6, three others were born on July 9, and the fifth one on July 10.
According to the Etawah Safari authorities, who kept the death of the lion cubs a closely guarded secret initially, out of five cubs born, three had died by July 10.
While two cubs were stillborn and one was very weak and could not survive. The fourth one, which had taken birth along with two others on July 9, died on Thursday and now the vets were monitoring the condition of the only surviving cub.
At around 8.30 am on Thursday, the condition of the fourth cub started deteriorating. There was swelling in its stomach and the cub had difficulty in breathing too.
Doctors attending the newborn said that at 11.55 am, the body became still, said the officials while interacting with media persons after the primary probe by the director’s office of the park.
Lioness Sona is also under medical observation and has gradually started eating meals. She had not been eating since her delivery. “Breathing issue is stated to be the primary cause of death. A post-mortem examination will reveal further details,” said officials.
According to the officials, the experts claimed that the survival of the cubs of the first pregnancy of the lioness was difficult and if the number of cubs delivered was more, the chances were even bleaker.
Meanwhile, after the first three deaths, the two surviving cubs were kept in a wooden enclosure with a barrier on all sides and mesh above to allow air to circulate, said the authorities adding that the cubs were moving inside the cot and trying to open their eyes.
However, the one born on July 10 has survived and is under medical observation. It is being fed artificially. Even the safari authorities had got in touch with experts from Gujarat over the development.
The officials also said that it was rare for a lioness to give birth to cubs over a period of four days. “Lionesses take a maximum of 24 to 30 hours to give birth to cubs. There is no research available about this either. Dehradun Wildlife Institute authorities have also been contacted to study why this happened,” said the official, adding, “In this case, lioness Sona gave birth to five cubs in a period of 100 hours which is not common.”
The Etawah safari with a perimeter of 8 km is one of the biggest in Asia. It is being established in an area of 350 hectares with a plan for a lion safari, a deer safari, an antelope safari, a bear safari, and a leopard safari.