Dartmoor Zoo reveals name and gender of its rare new Amur Leopard cub

Dartmoor Zoo has confirmed that its Amur leopard cub, born in September, is a female, with keepers choosing the name Zeya, taken from a river in the Amur leopard’s native region.

The cub was born on 29 September to the zoo’s breeding pair, Freddo and Lena, with staff observing the birth on CCTV inside the cubbing den.

READ NEXT: Plymouth maternity service shows major progress in care, new survey finds

Within five weeks, the cub had begun exploring the space, and at ten weeks old keepers confirmed her sex and name.

Zeya is one of only 15 Amur leopard cubs born worldwide in 2025, making the birth an important moment for the conservation of this critically endangered species.

Zoo keepers selected the name after putting forward several ideas linked to the leopard’s natural habitat in Russia and China.

Dartmoor Zoo CEO David Gibson said the birth is a significant step for the global breeding programme.

“With fewer than 200 of the species in captivity globally, the birth of our Amur Leopard cub at the end of September this year is a fabulous achievement for Dartmoor Zoo and for the global conservation efforts for Amur Leopard,” he said.

Staff at the Zoo have been encouraged by the cub’s progress:

“Now that we know for definite that the cub is healthy and thriving, we can allow ourselves to properly celebrate this major event,” he said. 

“We now want to work on getting both mum and cub on show so our guests can also enjoy this amazing news.”

Gibson said a female cub is especially important because she could contribute to the breeding programme in the future.

Amur leopards are considered the world’s rarest big cat, with an estimated 120 left in the wild. 

Numbers have begun to rise slowly in recent years due to increased protection in their range countries, however the species is still listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN.

Keeper Hannah Ivory said the young cub is active and developing well.

“Zeya is a full-of-beans little girl, who loves nothing more than playing with mum’s tail and testing her strength climbing the platforms,” she said.

Ivory added that the cub is already confident during feeding and has shown a preference for rabbits.

Zeya and her mother Lena remain off-show while checks continue, with updates about when the cub will go on public display to be released in due course.