Cuteness overload: Triplet white lion cubs born at Tbilisi Zoo

Tbilisi Zoo is celebrating the birth of triplet cubs of a rare breed white lion.

Cleopatra the white lion at Tbilisi Zoo gave birth to the three pink-nosed small balls of fluff today.

Photo by Tbilisi Zoo press office.

This was the first time white lions were born at Tbilisi Zoo after the devastating flash flood of June 13, 2015.  

Photo by Tbilisi Zoo press office.

The mother and the newborn cubs were doing well and were healthy, a Zoo administration official said. It is not yet known what gender the cubs are. 

The official also said Cleopatra had a "complicated delivery” but thanks to Zoo veterinarians everything ended well. 

Currently the mother and newborns are in a closed enclosure but the animals are expected to be on public show in several days. 

Photo by Tbilisi Zoo press office.

White lions are a very rare animal and are mostly common in Kruger National Park and protected areas of Timbavati Game Reserve in South Africa. 

White lions are not albinos. Their white colour is caused by a recessive trait derived from a less-severe mutation in the same gene that causes albinism, distinct from the gene responsible for white tigers. The breed, however, is almost extinct and is rarely observed any more. 

White lions live in fewer than 70 zoos all around the world. That is why their reproduction in Georgia is very important for this species survival.