Rare clouded leopard pups born in captivity using artificial insemination
A litter of clouded leopard pups were born at Khao Khew Open Zoo in Thailand, a press release from the Smithsonian's National Zoo announced Monday. It is the first successful artificial insemination birth of clouded leopard pups outside of the U.S. The previous AI birth occurred in 1992, also with the help of scientists from the National Zoo.
The successful AI birth is a key step towards creating a stable population of clouded snow leopards in captivity. Breeding the cats in captivity is difficult due to male-female aggression, as the male may kill the female when they are introduced for breeding. Clouded leopard populations are considered vulnerable, with only 10,000 remaining in the wild. The solitary breed is threatened by deforestation as well as poaching.
The sex of the newborn pups is not yet known. They will be hand-raised by zoo staff to increase their chances of survival.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Marshall Bright is a digital production assistant at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked at America's Test Kitchen, SAVEUR and Studio 360. Originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee, she now lives in Harlem with her cat, Pickles.
-
Political cartoons for January 19Cartoons Monday's political cartoons include Greenland tariffs, fighting the Fed, and more
-
Spain’s deadly high-speed train crashThe Explainer The country experienced its worst rail accident since 2013, with the death toll of 39 ‘not yet final’
-
Can Starmer continue to walk the Trump tightrope?Today's Big Question PM condemns US tariff threat but is less confrontational than some European allies
-
‘One Battle After Another’ wins Critics Choice honorsSpeed Read Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, won best picture at the 31st Critics Choice Awards
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees