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Tiger Birth At London Zoo Caught On Camera

Tiger Birth At London Zoo Caught On Camera

Hidden cameras have captured the moment an "adorable" tiger cub was born at London Zoo for the first time in 17 years.

A five-year-old Sumatran tiger called Melati gave birth last month after a labour lasting just six minutes.

Details about the new arrival have only just been released by zookeepers, who kept the pregnancy a closely-guarded secret from visitors.

They kept their distance from the first-time mother throughout her pregnancy, using a number of secret cameras to track her progress.

Keeper Paul Kybett said everyone at the zoo was "over the moon" about the birth.

"We were nervous about the pregnancy as it was Melati's first cub and we didn't know how she'd react," he said.

"When it came to her due date, we were all watching our monitors with bated breath.

"The actual birth happened very quickly and Melati's maternal instincts kicked in immediately. She started licking the cub all over and it soon began wriggling around - we couldn't have asked for a smoother birth.

"It's still very early days, so we're leaving Melati to take care of her adorable baby. Our cameras allow us to watch them both from a distance.

"So far she's proving to be a doting mum."

Zookeepers do not know the sex of the new cub, which will be kept with its mother in a private part of the zoo's "Tiger Territory" for several weeks.

The enclosure, which opened earlier this year, is designed to encourage breeding of the critically endangered species.

The as-yet-unnamed cub is the grandchild of the zoo's last tiger cub, Melati's father Hari.