CINCINNATI, April 26, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) Siegfried & Roy made conservation history today announcing that their Magical White Lion, Prosperity, gave birth to four cubs at the Cincinnati Zoo on April 1. Named "The Pride of the Millennium," the cubs are the first litter of White Lions born in the United States.
Introduced to the media and the public at a press conference this morning at the zoo, the cubs bring the number to 23 Magical White Lions in Siegfried & Roy's three-continent quest to save the endangered species from extinction.
Prosperity, along with Sunshine (her mate) and Future, are on loan to the Cincinnati Zoo as part of the Las Vegas entertainers' breeding program. The cubs will remain in Cincinnati.
Prosperity, the official mascot of the United States Senate, was born in Las Vegas and the unrelated males came from Germany. The cubs will remain nameless until the results of a contest coinciding with the zoo's annual Zoo Babies celebration is completed July 1. The contest winner will receive an all-expense-paid trip to Las Vegas.
"It's another miracle," said Roy. "Prosperity was born on Christmas Day and now, for Easter, we have the 'Pride of the Millennium.'"
Unlike her traumatic birth, Prosperity has been the perfect mother. The new mom struggled for life when she was born (weighing just more than two pounds), and has since captured the hearts of so many people since her battle for survival.
"My little cub has become a great lioness," said Roy. "What has happened here was our dream, our hope. It's amazing how quickly the time went. It seems like only yesterday that she was born and I was feeding her with an eyedropper."
"Today marks another difficult decision in my life. Allowing Prosperity to live in Cincinnati was a traumatic experience," Roy said, "and it is the same with the cubs. But Mother Nature is telling me that this is the right thing to do; this is what is necessary to have the Magical White Lions flourish."
"It is a significant birth for the future of the species," continued Roy. "It creates a new bloodline; it is an historic event for the people of Ohio and for the entire world. It is a gift for the ages."
With today's announcement, Siegfried & Roy -- the Magicians of the Century -- proved again that they are the men who have given back to the world the Magical White Lions and Royal White Tigers. Their tireless conservation efforts will mean that the children of the future will never have to ask, "What happened to the animals?"
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CONTACT: Siegfried & Roy PR.
Frank H. Lieberman
(702) 895-9941/210-9721
Barbara Rish
(513) 559-7724