These adorable white lion cubs were rescued after being mistreated by their mean mother
Mombasa and Nala play in their new home at Abony Zoo in Hungary on June 3, 2014.
These ridiculously cute, but extremely rare, eight-week old white lion cubs recently arrived at a private zoo in Hungary after being rescued not from poachers or traders or environmental destruction, but from their mother, who was mistreating them.
The brother and sister, called Mombasa and Nala, were born in a northern Italian zoo in April. But the zoo sold them to Abony Zoo near Budapest after their mother started behaving in a rather unmotherly way.
This is Nala.
And this is Mombasa.
"For a while she raised them well but after a while she began to hide them and to drag them around and since that area was very muddy the cubs developed a condition of losing their body hair and the zoo decided to sell them,” Tibor Toth, the owner of Abony Zoo, was quoted as saying.
Judging from these photos, the lion siblings have recovered from their ordeal.
White lions are endemic to South Africa's Timbavati region. The unique animals have been hunted almost to extinction, with only seven remaining in Timbavati under the protection of the Global White Lion Protection Trust.
It is estimated there are fewer than 300 in captivity.
The article you just read is free because dedicated readers and listeners like you chose to support our nonprofit newsroom. Our team works tirelessly to ensure you hear the latest in international, human-centered reporting every weekday. But our work would not be possible without you. We need your help.
Make a gift today to help us reach our $25,000 goal and keep The World going strong. Every gift will get us one step closer.