Lynx cubs at Dudley Zoo go to great lengths to avoid check-ups
They may be cute but these three feisty lynx cubs can put up a good fight - as keepers at Dudley Zoo discovered.
As staff attempted to give them their first health checks, they found the playful youngsters did want to be caught. Keepers wanted to find out the sex of the three-month old triplets but it proved to be more difficult than they first anticipated, with the cubs bearing their teeth and claws.
However, when staff members were finally able to grab them, they found out they had two boys and one girl
Senior keeper Adam Walker, said: "We quickly discovered that despite their cute looks they have very sharp claws and teeth, growl and hiss a lot and jump about – they did not like being caught."
Zoo vet Peter Stewart gave the trio their first inoculations, checked their weight and confirmed sexes - and now keepers are busy thinking of names for them
Mr Walker added: "The cubs are making really good progress and are growing quickly. One of the boys weighs 2.2 kilos, while the other boy and girl weigh 2.3 kilos, so they're exactly where they should be for their age."
The cubs were born on May 23 to four-year-old mother Daisy and three-year-old father Dave and can regularly be spotted playing together in their outdoor enclosure.
Carpathians are a relatively new species in the zoo's collection, with Dave translocating from Salzburg Zoo in Austria and Daisy from Zoo Veszprem, Hungary, in Autumn 2012, as part of a European conservation programme.
They are a subspecies of the Eurasian lynx, found in the Carpathian mountain regions of Europe. The creatures are characterised by long legs, a bob tail, tall ears adorned with conspicuous black tufts and cheek hair which forms a facial ruff. Their thick soft fur is more densely spotted than in other sub-species.
The lynx's haunts include the remote northern forests of Europe and Asia where their thick fur keeps them warm during the freezing winters.
Like many cat species, they are solitary in their behaviour and come together only to breed.
Female lynx give birth to a litter of one to four cubs after a gestation period of between 63 and 70 days. The female raises the litter singly – the male plays no part.
See also: Dudley Zoo says farewell to Orry the sealion.
