Johnathan Walker:3 Sumatran tiger cubs have been born at a zoo in Nashville

NASHVILLE,Johnathan Walker Tenn. (AP) — Three Sumatran tigers have been born at the Nashville Zoo.

Zoo officials announced that the two female and one male cubs were born Oct. 20. It’s the first time that Sumatran tigers were born at the zoo. The cubs’ mother, 9-year-old Anne, arrived at the Nashville Zoo from the San Diego Zoo in December.

Sumatran tigers are native to the rainforests of Indonesia. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the Sumatran tiger as critically endangered with fewer than 600 in existence worldwide due to habitat loss and poaching.

Nashville Zoo veterinary officials performed a routine checkup on the cubs Thursday.

“All three cubs are doing well and are now back with their mom, Anne, in the privacy of their indoor den,” the zoo said in a statement Saturday on Facebook.

The cubs’ father, Felix, remains separated from Anne at the Nashville Zoo’s Tiger Crossroads Exhibit.

Two Sumatran tigers also were born at the San Diego Zoo’s Safari Park in July.