'Bingwa Bunch' Cheetah Cubs Turn 1 Year Old At Saint Louis Zoo

ST. LOUIS, MO — The St. Louis Zoo's eight cheetah cubs, known as the "Bingwa Bunch" after their mother, turned 1 year old today, the zoo said in a news release.

The five girls and four boys are named for the numbers one through eight in Swahili: Moja, Mbili, Tatu, Nne, Tano, Sita, Saba, and Nane. Born on November 26, 2017, the eight cubs were the largest litter ever delivered at the St. Louis Zoo. The birth was also the first time a mother cheetah reared her own litter of eight at any zoo, according to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The average litter size is just three to four cheetah cubs.

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Zoo officials said the cheetahs are almost fully grown and weigh about 55 pounds. Cheetahs once ranged across Africa and Asia, but today fewer than 8,000 survive in Africa and fewer than 100 in Iran. Conflict with humans, disappearing habitats, and a lack of genetic diversity have been blamed for the cheetah's decline.

The Saint Louis Zoo has partnerships with organizations in Tanzania and Nambia to coordinate cheetah conservation efforts.

"This is an incredible highlight for me in my career," Steve Bircher, the zoo's curator of carnivores, said earlier this year. "To have a mother with eight cheetah cubs, this just doesn't happen very often. To see how they run and play, actually developing the skills they'll use when they become adults. It's really fun to watch them chase one another."

If you would like to get a good look at the cubs, the zoo's International Cheetah Day event on December 2 might be a good time. The zoo will host activities from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. where kids and families can create their own cheetah masks and learn about the wildlife conservation and how cheetahs are cared for at the zoo.

Photo by Robin Winkelman/Saint Louis Zoo