T.I.G.E.R.S. – The world’s first ever white lion-tiger hybrids

Welcome again and good afternoon from T.I.G.E.R.S.!  The tour and Preservation Station are in full swing!  If you're a regular reader here, you know we often talk about our amazing LIGER, a cross between a Lion and a White Tiger.  

These five-month-old liger cubs are the nephews of Hercules, pictured below, the official Guinness Book of World Records largest cat on the planet! The four male liger cubs are the first ever to be born from a white male lion and a white female tiger, making them the world's most unique big cats. 

The four brothers named Yeti, Odlin, Sampson, and Apollo are the world's first ever white lion-tiger hybrids. Their parents are the famous wildlife ambassadors, Ivory and Saraswati, at Jungle Island in Miami, FL. Ivory and Saraswati met each other at the Myrtle Beach Safari in Myrtle Beach, SC. There are only around 300 white lions and 1,200 white tigers left in the world, so the cubs' father and mother are extremely rare in their own right. Ivory is a white African lion and Saraswati is a snow white Bengal tiger.

These adorable cubs may look unassuming but they could grow to be the biggest cats in the world averaging a weight gain of one pound per day! A liger is just what it sounds like, a cross between a male lion and tigress. There are around 1,000 ligers in the world but none of them are white.

According to Dr. Antle, Yeti (pictured on far left) is the biggest and most boisterous, pushing past his smaller brothers and wanting to be the center of attention. Doc says he is sure Yeti will reach the size of his Uncle Hercules, if not larger. "I am convinced Yeti will make the Guinness Book of Records. He's so big already – has such a big, fat head and paws. All the cubs grow so quickly but Yeti is already so much bigger". Apollo is the smallest and behaves more like a house kitten, purring all the time and demanding to be stroked. Ligers tend to enjoy swimming, which is a characteristic of tigers and are sociable like lions.  

"We've had everyone from Congressman to people from all walks of life get on planes to fly in to see such an incredibly unique sight", says Doc Antle, "they have such a beautiful creamy color that I have never seen on a cat before".

*Thank you to Lucy Osborne and the UK Daily Mail Online for their help in this publication.*

T.I.G.E.R.S. Preserve and T.I.G.E.R.S. Preservation  Station were created as a wildlife education organization dedicated to promoting global conservation. With informative, educational and entertaining interactive programs, Dr. Bhagavan Antle has created a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Dr. Antle, Director of T.I.G.E.R.S., works closely with international wildlife conservation projects in North America, South America, Africa and Southeast Asia.   To make reservations over the phone, please call 843.855.2699 or click here.