07/14 ~ Meet Hana and Hani - new cool cats in town!

Greater Vancouver Zoo – PRESS RELEASE

Date: July 14, 2012                              

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MEET HANA AND HANI – NEW COOL CATS IN TOWN!  

Aldergrove – Hana and Hani are the Greater Vancouver Zoo’s newest addition to our cat family!

Hana and Hani are Siberian Tigers also known as Amur Tigers. The sisters were born on May 22, 2011 and now weigh in at approximately 180 lbs and 130 lbs respectively. Typically these animals are solitary animals unless they are family related or mating.

Siberian Tigers are listed as “endangered” according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Originally there were nine tiger subspecies and now we are down to 6 subspecies, which all are categorized as “endangered”.  The tiger range has appeared to be declining by over 50% over the last three generations and the tiger population also suggests a decline by at least 50% over a similar period. There used to be hundreds of thousands of the different species of tigers, where as now there is probably 3,000 – 5,000 in the world. In some areas the causes of population reduction may not be reversible.

Tigers are at the top of the food chain and are not a main concern as prey but unfortunately are in high demand in markets. They are hunted for trophies, and different body parts of the tigers are used in traditional Chinese medicines.

Our hope for the sisters is that they can become part of the Species Survival Plan® (SSP) Program, which works to cooperatively manage specific, and typically threatened or endangered, species population.

We are all very excited with their arrival as this is the Greater Vancouver Zoo’s first animal exchange between our Sister Zoo “Seoul Grand Park Zoo in South Korea”, a partnership that we formed in November 2010.

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Media Contact:                                                 

Jody Henderson                                                                  

General Manager                                              

Phone:  604.856.6825 x 33                                                        

Email:  jhenderson@gvzoo.com                                    

To learn more about the good things we do at the Zoo

 visit us at:  www.gvzoo.com or better yet come visit us in person!

Since 1970….dedicated to conservation, preservation & protection of endangered species!

The Greater Vancouver Zoo is an accredited zoo within the Canadian Association of Zoo and Aquariums (CAZA), which is a non-profit organization established to promote the welfare of animals and encourage

the advancement of education, conservation and science.