White Tigers and Lions Currently in Captivity

Many thanks, the files have been updated.

 

As I said the list is surprisingly long. And we haven't even touched on South America (I am pretty sure Buenos Aires has both) or Asia (which has lots of white tigers and perhaps a few white lions) or Australia (Dream World I think it's called?).

As for the argument about saving these rare creatures, technically they are correct. I mean they are rare and zoos are saving them. Of course I understand how this is misleading and why folks on this site get upset with the deception (equating color morphs with verifiable subspecies).

 

According to most online sources, the most accepted population estimate is around 200 for white tigers, and around 100 for white lions (plus 11-13 in the wild).

As for a country I haven't touched yet, I've got a suspicion that South Africa is going to have a significant number of both.

 

I've never been to a zoo that claims to be saving white Tigers - in fact DeYoung knows about the issues and refuses to breed them.

 

Asia would be pretty hard. I assume China having quite a lot of white tiger, as some of the more unknown city zoo also have them.
The one I definitely know have quite a lot of white tigers in Chimelong Safari Park, which I think breed them and sell them to others.

 

UK -
White Lions
-Lincolnshire Wildlife Park – males Pascha and Uganda, arrived Nov 2019 (Nonsense on website about saving the species)
-Isle of Wight Zoo – male Casper and female Frosty, arrived 2010. Half siblings from West Midlands
-Paradise Wildlife Park –male Moto, female Kya, female Zuri (born 2013 to Moto and Kya), Izulu (2009, sire is Thabo, not sure of mom, born at zoo)
-Wildlife Heritage Foundation – Themba (2009, brother to Izulu)
-West Midland? Most recently posted is Rolo, a 16 yo male, in 2015

White Tigers
-Paradise Wildlife Park – male Baikal, born 2011
-The Big Cat Sanctuary – female Narnia (from French circus)
-Amazing Animals (Heythrop Zoo) - multiple, couldn't find names or info
-Hamerton – Mohan and Shiva, 7 yo
-West Midland – male Buster, others? Had several a decade ago.

 

I believe DEW Haven in Maine claims that they are saving white tigers and breed them.

 

I don't know if you need this information, but I will let you know the situation in Korea.

The most famous zoo in Korea that has white tiger and white lion is Everland. Everland is the first zoo in Korea to have a white tiger and the second zoo to have a white lion.(First zoo to have a white lion is Daejeon O-world.)


About Everland's white tiger first, in 1990, Everland brought 3 white tiger(2 males and 1 female. one of male named Seolho(설호)) and 1 common colored tigress has white tiger genes(named Seolhu(설후)) from U.S zoo Including Cincinnati Zoo. And now, Everland has at more then 10 white tiger by inbreeding through that their first 4 tigers.

But in 2019, a rumor was around among Korean zoo manias, that rumor is Everland brought in two new white tigers from the U.S zoo. which I think this rumor is meaning it's starting to become difficult to reproduce by continuous incestuous breeding of Everland's existing white tigers.


And about the Everland's white lions, Everland brought A pair of white lions, male named Snowel(스노엘), female named Snowgirl(스노걸) from South African Republic in June 2007. In April 2008, A lioness named Snow White(백설공주) was born between Snowel and Snowgirl.

After Snow White was born, Everland brought more two lionesses and one male lion to form a group of six white lions, and making them the main exhibition species of Lost Valley, an approach that opened in April 2013.

Considering that Everland breeds so many lions and tigers to the point of being called "Lion and Tiger Factory," I think there could be more than six white lions, but little is known about them.


Everland has been promoting itself as the only zoo in South Korea that has white tiger and white lion since the death of last white Amur tiger at Seoul Zoo(See North American Regional Amur Tiger Studbook P.1, Paragraph Hybridization Issues) named Hite(하이트) on May 22, 2014. But in 2018, other three private zoos in Korea brought in white tigers and white lions. I'll write the story down separately.

And if you want information of Seoul Zoo's white Amur tigers, ask me. As I said, there is no more white tiger in Seoul Zoo. but if you want detailed information, I'll tell you about that.

 

Write about three private indoor zoos that brought in white tigers and white lions in 2018. First of all, two of these are owned by the same owner.

That two are Bukyeong Zoo(부경동물원) in Gimhae and Daegu Ini Theme Park(대구 아이니 테마파크) in Daegu, both owned by an animal trading company called Ini Group.

There is a pair of white tigers in Bukyeong Zoo and a pair of white lions in Daegu Ini Theme Park. I don't hear the news of the place in detail, but I think there will be no breeding because their all indoor zoo's environment is hellish, very hellish.

This photo is Bukyeong Zoo's white tiger enclosure.
There are no outdoor facilities, and all you see in the picture is all of this enclosure.
source is Korean internet news.​

The last remaining place is the Play Aquarium Bucheon(플레이아쿠아리움 부천) in Bucheon City. There are a pair of white tigers and a pair of white lions, and the environment is terrible to the same extent as the two above mentioned.


So in conclusion, to summarize the number of white tigers and white lions in South Korea, like this.

Eveland - White tiger: more 10, White lion: maybe 6.
Bukyeong Zoo - White tiger: pair.
Daegu Ini Theme Park - White lion: pair.
Play Aquarium Bucheon - White tiger: pair, White lion: pair.

I hope these places will stop raising white tigers and white lions as soon... Especially, the last three places are not even qualified to display animals, so I hope they stop being a zoo.

 

Fascinating stuff. The worksheets have been updated include this information

 

I will also write down the situation in North Korea.

As is well known in North Korea, there is the Pyongyang Central Zoo, which has both white tiger and white lion.

This picture shows Pyongyang Zoo and Seoul Zoo exchanging animals in July 2004.
The white tiger in the picture will be Vera.
source is Korean internet news.​

To write about the white tiger at there, it's related to the white Amur tiger at Seoul Zoo. In July 2004, the Seoul Zoo and the Pyongyang Zoo exchanged their animals, one of the animals sent by the Seoul Zoo was white female amur tiger named Vera(베라), the older sister of Hite. and later, Pyongyang Zoo increased the number of white tigers by breeding Vera with other white tigers they had.

This photo's three white tiger cubs was gave birth by Vera in august 2006 at the Pyongyang Zoo, a South Korean Internet news report said in 2007.
source is Korean internet news.​

Most Koreans like Amur tigers, but North Korea, in particular, uses Amur tiger as a symbol of their supreme leader, and there is a superstition in the East Asia that white animals have the power of spirituality. Because of that, I think Pyongyang Zoo must have quite a lot of white tigers.

As for white lions at Pyongyang Zoo, it seems a little complicated, so I'll write them separately.

 

Seoul and Pyongyang zoo exchange animals? That's interesting. Maybe that show there are no politics in the zoo world.

 

In fact, I didn't know much about the white lion at the Pyongyang Zoo, but I found useful information on the North Korean website while I was looking for information to write this posts.

That information was a video introducing the Pyongyang Zoo's white lion, which was posted late last year, I'll put the captured image from that video in this post.

White Lion Descriptions at Pyongyang Zoo.
It is written in English, so I will not explain it separately.



A pair of white lions appearing in that video.
​

Given that there is a picture of a pair of white lions in the explanatory text, and also only a pair in the video, I think there still seems to be only a pair of white lion in North Korea.

 

Well... That was also possible because South and North Korea were on good terms at the time. There were some Korean zoo manias who had hoped that they would be able to exchange animals again because Trump and Kim Jong-un had a meeting in 2018, but now can't imagine that.

 

Zoo Negara in Kuala Lumpur has white tigers.
Ouwehands Zoo has white lions.

 

I remembered I was found for data on the number of white tigers in the Indian zoo last year. It's quite old data (2016-2017), but I'll upload it.

​

This data table is on page 8 of the National Studbook Bengal Tiger
(Panthera tigris tigris) III Edition. I think it would be good to read the original because there might be something I missed.

 

Last I checked the Haifa Zoo had white tigers.

The zoo is small but nicely done and worth a trip if you're in the country. It's on the top of Mt. Carmel so the views are magnificent.

 

In 2015, ALS in Canada had several white lions, and in fact, two actually bred right near/under our car, we learned from the trailing cars trying to verify the breeding.

Great Adventure Safari's is kept with the Bengal tiger. Wonder why no seems to hold Bengal any more? Sumatran, Malayan, and Amur even rarer?

 

Australasia

White Tigers:

Australia:

Dreamworld: 0.1 Kiko (2015); 0.1 Kali (2015)

New Zealand:

Zion Wildlife Gardens: 0.1 Rewa (2001); 0.1 Shanti (2005)
Pouakai Zoo: 0.1 Kala (2006) - on loan from Zion Wildlife Gardens

White Lions:

Australia:

Altina Wildlife Park
Crocodylus Park
Darling Downs Zoo
Hunter Valley Zoo
Mansfield Zoo
Mogo Zoo
National Zoo
Shoalhaven Zoo
Tasmania Zoo
Zoodoo Zoo

New Zealand:

Zion Wildlife Gardens

 

There are 2 white tiger siblings at Singapore Zoo. They are called Pasha and Keysa from the Maharani Zoo in Indonesia.