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SINGAPORE – The Singapore Zoo has welcomed a lion cub named Simba to its animal kingdom following artificial insemination that officials said was a first for the city-state on Tuesday.
It is rare for lions to be conceived by artificial insemination, as the procedure was first successfully performed in 2018 – resulting in two cubs in South Africa.
Lion populations in the wild have fallen by more than 40 percent over the past two decades, with around 23,000 to 39,000 mature animals, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
He lists lions as vulnerable.
The new Singapore lion cub, named after Disney’s main character “The Lion King”, was conceived with the sperm of an old African lion.
Father Mufasa, who also takes his name from the animated film, was in poor health and did not survive the procedure, the zoo said.
Simba, born in October, is cared for by his mother Kayla and zookeepers, and is “healthy and curious,” officials said.
A video showed Simba being fed with a bottle and playing with a ball.
cla / sr / lb / fox
© Agence France-Presse
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