Two rescued mountain lion cubs recovering at the Oakland Zoo have become the internet’s newest unlikely stars – tiny, spotted ambassadors for a species more often feared than fussed over.
The cubs, named Crimson and Clover, arrived at the zoo in March after separate rescues in California. Both were too young and fragile to survive on their own, zoo officials said, and both are being cared for at the veterinary hospital as staff works toward what it hopes will be an eventual introduction.
Crimson, a male cub found alone in the Santa Monica Mountains, was brought to the Los Angeles Zoo on March 25 by the National Park Service and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Veterinary staff there found he was in overall good health, though he was missing toes on one foot – an injury the zoo said happened in the wild.
Rescued mountain lion cubs Crimson (pictured) and Clover are recovering at the Oakland Zoo after separate rescues in California. The young cubs have become viral favorites as zoo staff prepare to eventually introduce them. (Oakland Zoo)
Two days later, Crimson was flown to Oakland by Flying Tails Animal Rescue and transferred to the Oakland Zoo’s veterinary hospital. At about 3 weeks old, he was one of the youngest mountain lion cubs the zoo has taken in since joining the Bay Area Cougar Action Team.
Zoo staff has been bottle-feeding him around the clock, initially every three hours, while trying to provide the kind of care and stimulation he would have received from his mother in the wild.
Videos posted by the zoo show the cub pawing at stuffed animals and practicing the wobbly pounces of a growing predator.
“I’ve had the privilege of witnessing countless rescues. There is something so deeply moving about watching our team pour themselves so completely into a single life,” Oakland Zoo CEO Nik Dehejia said in a statement. “Their skill, their sleepless nights, and their quiet determination motivate me.”
Rescued mountain lion cubs Crimson and Clover (pictured) are recovering at the Oakland Zoo after separate rescues in California. The young cubs have become viral favorites as zoo staff prepares to introduce them. (Oakland Zoo)
Clover, a female cub rescued earlier in March from El Dorado County, arrived at the zoo severely emaciated, weak and covered in ticks, according to the zoo. Her condition worsened after arrival, and zoo staff performed a blood transfusion using blood from Briar, a resident mountain lion rescued in 2024.
The zoo said Clover has since been recovering and getting closer to a healthy weight for her age.
Neither cub can be returned to the wild. Mountain lion cubs depend on their mothers for roughly 12 to 18 months – and sometimes longer – to learn how to hunt, avoid danger and survive, zoo officials said.
Crimson marked the Oakland Zoo’s 33rd mountain lion rescue through its work with the Bay Area Cougar Action Team. The zoo said habitat fragmentation, vehicle strikes, wildfires and other human-wildlife conflicts remain major threats to California mountain lions.
For now, zoo staff is waiting until Crimson is bigger and stronger before introducing him to Clover. If all goes well, the two orphaned cubs may soon have what they lost in the wild: another mountain lion to grow up with.
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This article originally published at Oakland Zoo mountain lion cubs become viral stars.