Five wild Siberian tiger cubs were spotted and video filmed in northeast China's Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces ahead of the Chinese New Year of the Tiger, the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park said.

In December, mother Siberian tiger "Chunni" and her two cubs appeared in infrared cameras for the first time. One of the cubs even got close to the camera, giving observers a happy surprise.

In addition, three cubs of mother tiger "Erya" were captured on video last month. In spite of the pre-dawn poor lighting condition, the mother tiger and the cubs are seen in good health.

"In fact, tigers can give birth at any time of the year. But there will be a small spike of reproduction for Siberian tigers as winter approaches," said Feng Limin, deputy director of the Monitoring and Research Center for Tiger and Leopard in Northeast China under the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

The cubs were estimated to be two to three months old.

"Because tiger cubs are weak and can't open their eyes right after their birth, the mother tigers would hide their kids until they are about two months old before taking them to the outside," Feng said.

Thanks to the multiple measures of artificial breeding and habitat protection, the population of Siberian tigers in China has been on the rise in recent years.

Feng said that wild Siberian tigers have been found in over a half area of the 14,000-square-kilometer Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park. And more and more cubs are expected in the park in the years to come.

(Cover image via screenshot.)

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