Orange and black stripes have arrived at the Akron Zoo!

There are now two Sumatran tigers, as Berani joins Jae-Jae, who's been living at the zoo since 2009.

Sumatran tigers are now an endangered species with fewer than 300 in the wild today.

Press Release:

AKRON, Ohio – A new Sumatran tiger is now on exhibit at the Akron Zoo. The tiger, Berani, arrived at the Akron Zoo from the San Antonio Zoo. The zoo now has two male Sumatran tigers, which are endangered species. Berani was born on September 18, 2001 at the National Zoo.

He joins Jae-Jae who has been at the Akron Zoo since 2009. Because tigers are solitary animals by nature and Berani and Jae-Jae are both males, they will not be on exhibit at the same time. When not on exhibit they will be outside in the zoo’s off exhibit holding or in their indoor exhibit.

Sumatran tigers are indigenous to the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Like all species of tigers, the Sumatran tiger is an endangered species. There are less than 300 Sumatran tigers in the wild.

Deforestation and poaching are the critical challenges facing these tigers in the wild. Currently there are only five subspecies of tigers that exist in the wild: Bengal, Indochinese, Amur, Malayan and Sumatran.

The South China tiger is thought to be extinct in the wild, but some do remain in captivity in Chinese zoos. The
Caspian, Javan and Bali tigers are all extinct. It has been estimated that as few as 3,500 total tigers remain in the wild.