LOOK: South China tiger cub triplets make first public appearance at Hangzhou Safari Park

South China tigers are ‘functionally extinct’ and have not been spotted in the wild for more than 25 years

Divert your focus for a moment from coverage of the South China sea to this majestic set of newborn South China tiger cub triplets, here to remind you that in this cruel, indifferent universe of ours, there remain certain oases of pure goodness where talk of trade wars, authoritarianism, and nuclear escalation could not seem any less consequential.

Last month, a South China tiger mom named Ma Er gave birth to this regal trio at Hangzhou’s Safari Park, which is building quite an impressive track record of breeding the exceptionally rare tiger subspecies.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, South China tigers are believed to be “functionally extinct” and have not been seen in the wild for more than a quarter century. Local media reported that their numbers are even sparser than the Great Panda population.

So the proverbial hat is tipped to the Hangzhou Safari Park, which in less than four years has successfully bred five healthy cubs and now boasts a total population of 10 South China tigers.

The triplets made their public debut over the weekend after they were moved into a special pen where they will remain under round-the-clock supervision, being pampered and coddled and bottle-fed like the royalty they are by the zookeeper whose enviable job it is to wait at their beck and call.

[Images via Imagine China / Zhejiang Online]