A circus in Germany is celebrating the birth of four rare white lion cubs.
A spokeswoman for Circus Krone says the three males and their sister were born Wednesday in the eastern city of Magdeburg and are doing well.
In 2012 six cubs were born to Princess and King Tonga at Circus Krone.
And in April this year King Tonga fathered another cub by a different white lioness who is called Diamond.
A spokeswoman for the circus, Susanne Matzenau, told the BBC that the cubs would not go on show in the circus for at least four years. First they would spend a year with their mother, then mix with other lions and undergo training, she said.
The circus’s lions are trained by Martin Lacey Junior, an award-winning British lion-tamer.
“Once a lion gets a name it goes to the trainer for its education,” Ms Matzenau said.
The cubs will be named in four to five weeks’ time, she said. The lion-tamer “wants to observe them first and see their character”.
The circus received King Tonga as a gift from a Saudi prince. The lion has four lionesses in his pride – two white ones and two gold-coloured. “He’s fulfilling his duty very well as a husband,” Ms Matzenau said.
Agencies/Canadajournal