Two clouded leopard cubs named Koshi and Senja that were born at the Houston Zoo three months ago appeared before the public for the first time this week.
Besides bringing in zoo visitors, the 3-month-old cubs serve as ambassadors for conservation efforts to protect endangered species around the globe, the Houston Chronicle reported.
"Clouded leopard, like many other species, face extinction if nothing is done to stop habitat destruction, degradation and fragmentation," Benoit Goossens, director at the Danau Girang Field Centre in Sabah, Malaysia, wrote in an email quoted by the Chronicle.
By boosting ticket sales, the cubs are both generating revenue to support conservation and providing a living argument in favor of having some animals live in captivity.
"The funding coming from Houston Zoo is extremely important," Goossens said in the email.
The brother leopard cubs have already been jumping from tree to tree as they frolic around their zoo habitat, KTRK-TV reported. They are expected to grow to around 3 feet long with a weight between 40 and 50 pounds.
Zoo handlers took special care to make sure the cubs were comfortable around people since clouded leopards tend to keep to themselves in the wild, an official told KTRK-TV.
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