Sumatran tiger is latest arrival at Cork's Fota Wildlife Park 

Cork’s Fota Wildlife Park has announced the arrival of a new Sumatran tiger to the facility’s endangered breeding programme.

The two-year-old male, named Dao, came from Zoo Krefeld in Germany as part of a European Endangered species Programme (EEP) for Sumatran tigers.

With fewer than 350 individual Sumatran tigers estimated to remain in the wild, Dao has been paired with resident female tiger, Jambi, who came from Germany’s Heidelberg Zoo in February 2023 as part of the breeding programme.

The Sumatran tiger is one of the rarest species of tiger in the world, classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2008.

“Dao arrived at Fota Wildlife Park earlier in December and went through a period of gradual introduction to his new habitat,” said lead ranger at Fota Wildlife Park, Julien Fonteneau.

Specialised 

“Introducing a new tiger is a highly specialised process that demands expert husbandry.

“We’re delighted to say that he is settling in really well [and] eventually Dao and Jambi will be gradually acclimatised to each other in preparation for the breeding programme.

“To preserve genetic diversity within the EEP breeding programme, tigers may be transferred to other zoological parks to pair with new mates.

“We hope [Dao and Jambi] will both play a key part in global tiger conservation.”

The last tiger birth at Fota Wildlife Park was a male cub named Dash, who was born in the summer of 2019.

Sumatran tigers, whose collective noun is a streak, are the smallest surviving species of tiger and are distinguished by heavy black stripes on their orange coats.

Known for having the narrowest stripe patterns among tigers, each Sumatran tiger can be individually identified by its unique pattern. The streak at Fota Wildlife Park now consists of three Sumatran tigers, including a 10-year-old male, Batak, the three and a half year old Jambi and the two-year-old Dao.

Fota Wildlife Park is open daily from 9.30am, with entry and ticket purchasing available at the park gates.

For more information, visit https://www.fotawildlife.ie.