An extremely rare male South China tiger cub was born in the Free State province to proud parents Tiger Woods and Cathay.
The birth of little Tiger Woods Jr. marks the first time one of the animals has been born outside China, according to the Save China’s Tigers organization. Organization founder Li Quan said in a statement to Reuters news service:
“It is truly a historic event, because it is the first time that a South China Tiger has been born outside of China. Only around 60 South China Tigers exist in captivity and less than 30 survive in the wild.”
The cub was born healthy, and in fact a bit larger than average at 1.2 kilograms, at a wildlife conservation area. The South China tiger is one of the smallest tiger subspecies, and is found only in south and central China. In the 1950s there were an estimated 4,000 of the tigers in China, but habitat loss and poaching have severely reduced the population.