Two hyena cubs born at Monarto Zoo

MONARTO Zoo’s hyena clan have welcomed twin cubs, with the cute pair caught on video for the first time. WATCH IT HERE

MONARTO Zoo’s spotted hyena clan have welcomed twin cubs, born to first-time parents Thandi and Piltengi.

The cubs, born on September 13, had their first health check today - being examined, microchipped, vaccinated and having DNA samples taken.

Carnivore Keeper Rachel Robbins said first-time mother Thandi was doing incredibly well looking after her young.

A spotted hyena cub has a health check at Monarto Zoo. Picture: Geoff Brooks / Zoos SA

“Due to their unique reproductive anatomy, first-time hyena mums have a very high chance of something going wrong during birth, and a high percentage of first-time mothers in the wild die, so it’s incredible to see Thandi successfully rearing two cubs,” she said.

“It’s also really exciting to see Piltengi father his first cubs as he has wild parentage which provides incredibly valuable genetics for the region.”

The cubs have spent their first eight weeks of life in a private habitat with their parents and grandmother Kigali, and will be ready for public viewers in a few months.

“Yes our teeth and ambitions are bared...” Picture Geoff Brooks / Zoos SA

“The cubs are still quite shy, sticking close to mum and their den but every day they grow a little more confident,” Ms Robbins said.

“For now, the best time to catch a glimpse of the youngsters is during our Lions at Bedtime tour.”

The two births continue a successful year for Monarto Zoo’s breeding program, which also yielded two Giraffe calves, five Cheetah cubs, two Meerkat pups, a porcupette and Przewalski’s Horse foals.

Other animals have also arrived at the zoo, including southern white rhino Savannah who arrived from Queensland in a swap with Kibibi, who was taken to Australia Zoo.