Two rare Amur leopard cubs born this week at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo welcomed the first Amur leopard cubs in nearly two decades.

According to the CMZoo, there were happy tears at the zoo on May 17 as Asian Highlands keepers celebrated the long-awaited arrival of the two cubs. Officials said Anya, a 9-year-old critically endangered leopard, became a first-time mom just three days after Mother's Day.

The little ones are covered in black spots and so far their favorite activities are snuggling, nursing, and wriggling. CMZoo said the cubs are around two lbs. each and are still pretty vulnerable with closed eyes - but they're in good paws with Anya.

“Imagine nursing your first baby while having contractions for your second,” said Rebecca Zwicker, animal care manager in Asian Highlands. “I think Anya is absolutely incredible. She looks confident and comfortable with the cubs, and we’re elated for her and her babies. I’m so proud of our animal care team and their commitment to Anya and the future of the Amur leopard species.”

The first weeks and months of a leopard cub’s life are extremely fragile, but Zwicker says leopard fans everywhere have reason to feel optimistic.

“It always amazes me when a first-time mom embraces the role as naturally as Anya has,” said Zwicker. “She’s a patient and attentive mom. She knows where those babies are at all times. There’s a lot of cuddling, grooming, nursing, and cleaning going on, and we’re seeing Anya take time to groom and care for herself, which is equally important.”

The CMZOo said the two-day-old cubs and Anya are bonding well. The first cub born quickly showed instincts to the nurse, which helped Anya’s maternal instincts take over for the second cub’s arrival about two hours later. At first, the second cub seemed less active than the first-born cub, and it took a while for it to get the hang of nursing. Once cub #2 smelled where cub #1 was having its meal, it made a baby beeline to nurse

Zoo officials said after a short sibling squabble, a full-bellied cub #1 moved aside for cub #2 to settle in for its first meal. Since then, both cubs have been nursing regularly and cub #2 is quickly catching up to its sibling’s energy level.

The CMZoo said Amur leopards are widely known as the rarest big cats on the planet. These cubs provide hope for the future of their species. Only around 100 Amur leopards are remaining in the wilds of far-east Russia and China.

The now four Amur leopards at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo now represent four percent of the wild population.

The CMZoo said it's been committed to the Amur Leopard Species Survival Plan (SSP) and accepted the risky breeding recommendation in 2019.

Dad, 7-year-old Anadyr, will not have an active parenting role for the cubs, as is normal for male Amur leopards. Zoo officials said because both Anya's and Anadyr's genetics are underrepresented in both wild and human care populations, these cubs are considered very important within the SSP.

The CMZoo team is watching the new family remotely through cameras that were pre-placed in Anya's den. So far, Anya is the only one to see the cubs in person, and zoo keepers plan to keep it like that for now.

The cubs will mark their first milestones with Anya behind the scenes for at least eight weeks - but the zoo will announce when the cubs are big enough for guests to visit them in Asian Highlands.

There are no plans for names, in line with Zoo tradition to wait 30 days to name a baby.

The CMZoo said the squirmy little ones have no idea how much they have just contributed to their species' future - but we do.