CHEETAH CUBS SET FOR PUBLIC DEBUT
A trio of cheetah cubs have been getting ready to face the public.
Cody, Cairo and Chloe are the first cheetahs to be born at West Midland Safari Park near Bewdley, Worcestershire, in its 41 years.
Now 16 weeks old, the two boys and their sister have already been stretching their legs as they would in their natural environment in Africa, according to Lawrence Bates, the park's head of carnivores.
He said: "These cubs really are double trouble, plus one.
"Whilst they are still only babies, they have already developed stalking skills and like to chase anything that moves - especially mum."
He added: "In the wild, cheetah are masters of the chase - they dash out from under cover and usually bring down their prey on the first attempt.
"Mealtimes at the park are not usually so dramatic, although they do have a starve day once a week to replicate conditions experienced in the wild."
The new arrivals, born on March 23, have now been wormed and vaccinated and will face the public for the first time this week in their enclosure, which is the UK's largest drive-by cheetah reserve.
First-time mother Epezi has been taking the cubs' boisterous behaviour in her stride.
Their father, Cheetor, arrived at the park from a captive breeding facility in South Africa in 2008.
The safari park now has 10 cheetahs in its group - called a coalition.
Cheetahs are the fastest land animal on Earth and can accelerate from 0-45mph in three seconds, with a top speed of about 70mph.
