2 Snow Leopard Cubs Born At LA Zoo Make Public Debut

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Visitors to the Los Angeles Zoo will get their first look Tuesday at two endangered snow leopard cubs born there earlier this year.

The brother and sister cubs were born in May to 3-year-old mother Georgina and 5-year-old father Fred. They are the first offspring for the adults, who were paired in 2015 as part of a species survival plan.

At four months old, the cubs are finally strong and coordinated enough to navigate their outdoor habitat, animal keeper Stephanie Zielinski said.

Snow leopards in the wild are found in the mountains of Central Asia throughout 12 countries and can tolerate extreme temperatures of 104 degrees Fahrenheit down to 40 degrees below zero. There are an estimated 2,000 to 7,000 snow leopards left in the wild.

"We're so excited to welcome these cubs," Zielinski said. "There is less known about these beautiful cats than most of the other large cat species due to the extreme habitat snow leopards have evolved to live in the wild."

(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)