UPDATE: You can help name the cute duo
A Montgomery County zoo excitedly -- and unexpectedly -- welcomed a pair of jaguar cubs last week.
The Elmwood Park Zoo announced that Inka the jaguar gave birth the cubs on Jan. 24, the zoo announced Tuesday. "The birth was unexpected," said the zoo in a news release.
"Inka and the cubs have been under constant observation since their discovery on the morning of the 24th," said the zoo. "The cubs look great, are actively nursing for long periods of time, and are very vocal. Inka is a very attentive mother; she's so attentive that it took nearly a week before the staff was able to separate her in order to examine the cubs."
The jaguars’ father Zean and Inka were introduced at the Norristown, Pennsylvania zoo in October 2016, said the zoo.
The yet-to-be-named jaguars are the first in 2017 born at an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited facility, said the zoo.
Inka and her cubs will remain out of the public eye for the next couple of months, said the zoo. The zoo, however, will be holding a gender reveal event -- the cubs won't be shown off -- Friday at noon on its Facebook page and in person.
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The jaguar family is expected to reside in the zoo’s new "Trail of the Jaguar" exhibit, which is set to open in the spring, said the zoo.
Carnivorous jaguars, which usually live between 12 to 15 years, are South America's biggest cats, weighing in between 100 to 250 pounds and measuring up to 6-feet long as adults, according to National Geographic.
