On Sunday, December 10 two Siberian tigers—a male and a female, both one-and-a-half years old—arrived at the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park (PNH Zoological Park), popularly known as Darjeeling Zoo. These are the first Siberian tigers to find a home in an Indian zoo since 2007.

PNH Zoological Park Director Basavraj S Holeyachi told The Sunday Express over phone that the last Siberian tiger in India passed away in the same zoo in 2007.

Siberian tigers are mainly found in parts of Russia and China and are distinguished from other tiger subspecies by their orange coat with black stripes and thick fur.

The two had landed at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata from Pafos Zoo in Peyia in Cyprus the previous day’s evening, from where they were escorted by a team from Darjeeling Zoo.

The rare cats were acquired through an exchange programme, under which PNH Zoological Park sent two of its red pandas, another endangered animal, to the zoo in Cyprus, Holeyachi said.

“As we have a male and a female Siberian tiger now, we would try captive breeding in the zoo. We are currently running captive breeding programmes for a number of animals including the red panda and snow leopard,” said Holeyachi.