Born earlier this year as part of a global programme to save the species from extinction, the litter of “gangsters” as they’ve been nicknamed by zoo staff, bring the total number of white lions at the Zoo to 12, all bred from the original 3 who arrived from Timbavati in South Africa in 2004.

Owner of Mogo Zoo Sally Padey held off announcing their arrival until they were successfully integrated into the existing pride at the Zoo.

“Having a litter of five males is quite unique, of course it is unknown how often it may have occurred in the wild, and we will never know, but this is certainly the first reported case from breeding programmes in captivity around the world."

“White lions have been extinct in the wild for more than 12 years, so these programmes have been developed in a desperate bid to save these magnificent animals from disappearing forever,” said Sally.

Located near Batemans Bay on the NSW south coast, Mogo Zoo is committed to the survival of endangered animals and have more than 35 rare and exotic species including snow leopard, jaguar, tamarin, meerkat, pygmy marmoset and Nepalese red panda just to name a few.