This page is dedicated to Merlin:
the male white lion at the Philadelphia Zoo.
Photographs by Michael E. Perez
From the summer of 2004 until the spring of 2006, when the new large cat habitat at the Philadelphia Zoo will be finished, Merlin and the three lionesses will be visiting the Columbus (OH) Zoo and Aquarium. We'll miss them, but look forward to seeing all of them in their new environment. I am actually tempted to go to Columbus, but will probably try to be patient until their return. We will certainly post some photos of them in their new home when it opens.
Over the years that I have been taking photos, Merlin has always been one of my favorite subjects. Whenever my wife, Cathi, and I visit the zoo (which is often - we've been members for many years), the lion exhibit is almost always the first place I open my camera bag. Click on any of the thumbnail images below to view a larger image. We hope you enjoy them!
A few words about the white lions:
White lions like those at the Philadelphia Zoo are not albinos. Albinos are pure white and have pink eyes. These lions are pale compared to other lions and have golden eyes. Genetically, the tawny coloration is dominant and the white is recessive, but all of Philly's lions carry the gene for the white coloration. These pale lions have a slim chance of survival in the wild. They lack the camouflage necessary to stalk prey successfully and they are very easy for poachers to spot.
Rumors about white lions in Africa circulated for many years, but the first confirmed sighting was in 1948. In 1975, two white cubs were found by wildlife researcher Chris McBride in the Timbavati Game Preserve in South Africa. He and his wife studied these animals and two books, The White Lions of Timbavati and Operation White Lion , resulted from these studies.
The Philadelphia Zoo's Curator of Mammals, David Wood, was on business in Africa in 1992 and during a flight layover, he visited the Johannesburg Zoo. Just by chance, another zoo was unable to take possession of a group of these lions and another home had to be found quickly. It was a no-brainer: Philly was their new home! Two white females, Jezebel and Vinkel, arrived in April 1993 and a tawny male (Merlin) and a tawny female (Zenda) both arrived that summer.
In January of 1994, it was suspected that Vinkel was pregnant, since she kept her distance from the others. Pregnant lionesses do not gain much weight so that they are not too incapacitated, since their survival in the wild depends on hunting. Also, the gestation period for lion cubs is about three months , so there is not much time to gain a lot of weight. On March 24, 1994, these suspicions were confirmed and three cubs were born, all female. Two were tawny and one was white. Chris McBride and his family were in town at the time they were born and got the honor of naming the cubs. The white cub, who was the first born, was named Tandi, which means "love" in Zulu, one of the tribal languages of her parents' native South Africa. The tawny cubs were named Kolwa ("faith") and Tembi ("hope"). Sadly, Tembi died from intestinal bacteria on April
7, 1994, despite the best efforts of zoo veterinarians Keith Hinshaw and Donna Ialeggio. However, on May 26, 1994, Jezebel gave birth to a white female, who was named Khanya. Tandi and Kolwa were first introduced to the public in June 1994 (the pictures above were taken June 28, 1994) and Khanya a little while later (the picture of all three was taken on September 13, 1994). They grew quickly and were taken to other zoos in the fall of 1994.
Two years later, on March 17, 1996, Vinkel gave birth to three more cubs: a white female, Nakanda (which means "lucky" in Zulu), and two tawny males, Tombo ("clover") and Tonyi ("charm"). Each cub weighted just over three pounds at birth. Vinkel, demonstrating excellent mothering skills, reared the cubs. Even zoo visitors were permitted to observe Vinkel being a good mother, albeit behind the bars of
the indoor observation area (the photo at the left was taken on June 17,1996). Nakanda and one of the males stayed through the winter and we got to see how quickly they grow (the photos at the right were taken on May 5, 1997). The mane on the male was beginning to lengthen and Nakanda looked almost like a full-grown female. The size of the teeth was the only thing that gave her real age away.
Merlin continues to thrive at the Philadelphia Zoo and we continue to take photos of him and his ladies. The photos below were taken from 1994 up to the present (the latest ones are from September 19, 2002, and all the new ones are on the top row) and show him in many different "moods." It's always a pleasure to visit him there and we'll try to include the latest ones as they're taken. If you hold your mouse over the thumbnail pictures, the date that the photo was taken will pop up, a left click will take you to an enlarged photo. Hit the back button of your browser to return to this page. Enjoy!
In January of 1994, it was suspected that Vinkel was pregnant, since she kept her distance from the others. Pregnant lionesses do not gain much weight so that they are not too incapacitated, since their survival in the wild depends on hunting. Also, the gestation period for lion cubs is about three months , so there is not much time to gain a lot of weight. On March 24, 1994, these suspicions were confirmed and three cubs were born, all female. Two were tawny and one was white. Chris McBride and his family were in town at the time they were born and got the honor of naming the cubs. The white cub, who was the first born, was named Tandi, which means "love" in Zulu, one of the tribal languages of her parents' native South Africa. The tawny cubs were named Kolwa ("faith") and Tembi ("hope"). Sadly, Tembi died from intestinal bacteria on April
7, 1994, despite the best efforts of zoo veterinarians Keith Hinshaw and Donna Ialeggio. However, on May 26, 1994, Jezebel gave birth to a white female, who was named Khanya. Tandi and Kolwa were first introduced to the public in June 1994 (the pictures above were taken June 28, 1994) and Khanya a little while later (the picture of all three was taken on September 13, 1994). They grew quickly and were taken to other zoos in the fall of 1994.
