Ecology was born in the Russian zoo
You have probably heard about who a liger is — a hybrid between a lion and a tiger, but recently a Russian zoo presented photos of the so-called “liliger” named Kiara, the offspring of the mother liger and lion father.
The cub, which was recently born at the Novosibirsk Zoo, is probably the only liliger on the planet. Adorable, like all kittens, this lilycot, like all other cat hybrids, raises serious concerns among those who are in favor of preserving big cats.
Ligers are born by crossing a male lion with a female tiger. Craig Packer, a scientist at the University of Minnesota Center for the Study of Lions, said he had not heard of the existence of liligers before, but was not at all surprised to learn that they existed.
All ligers are born in captivity, as tigers and lions never interbreed in nature, being different species. This is due not only to the fact that their populations are geographically separated from each other, but also due to certain behavioral mechanisms that prevent these two species from interbreeding.
“If a tiger tried to mate with a female lion, it would be chased by other Pride lions pretty quickly, and vice versa,” Parker said.
In captivity, things are quite different. With no other alternatives, tigers and lions can interbreed. “Lions and tigers are separated by about 7 million years of evolution,” Parker said. “However, they are still quite close relatives and can produce hybrid offspring.”
In the wild, animals like Kiara would be very scattered and unlikely to survive. Lions are genetically predisposed to live in social groups and communicate with each other. Tigers, on the contrary, lead a hermit lifestyle.
Some zoos intentionally breed different cats (probably to promote their facility), but US zoos don't. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the accrediting body for zoos in North America, does not approve the birth of ligers, so no zoo launches them. Instead, modern zoological institutions focus on wildlife conservation programs.
Parker, who has devoted his career to studying lions, has no idea why zoos spend time and money developing hybrids like liligers. “From a conservation point of view,” he said, “this is completely pointless, if not inappropriate.”