Longleat's Rusty the tiger is off to Blackpool to find love

An endangered Amur tiger has left Longleat for a new life at Blackpool Zoo as part of a European captive breeding programme for the rare big cats.

Four-year-old Rusty was born at the Wiltshire Safari Park in 2019 along with his sister Yuki. The pair celebrated their fourth birthdays earlier this month.

A success story for Longleat’s breeding programme, the giant male is being re-located to the Lancashire zoo now he is fully mature, to join a female of his own.

His keeper, Amy Walker said: “While it is obviously incredibly difficult for the keepers to have to say goodbye to Rusty, we are happy and proud to see him going to another collection to represent his species and hopefully one day breed to help with the next generation of Amur tigers”.

“Although numbers in the wild are showing signs of recovery, the situation is still very precarious and captive breeding remains hugely important to help secure the sub species’ long term survival."

Native to the far east of Russia, the Amur tiger is the largest of the big cats and can weigh up to 300 kg and measure more than three metres in length.

In the 1930s the tigers had nearly died out due to hunting and logging. At one stage it is thought the population fell as low as just 20–30 animals.

Although they are still under severe threat their status was officially changed from Critically Endangered to Endangered in 2007.

In 2022 it was reported numbers in the wild had doubled in 12 years to 750, the highest for more than a century.

Darren Webster, Zoo Director at Blackpool Zoo, said: “We are excited to welcome Rusty to Blackpool Zoo. 

"He is a stunning tiger and a very important part of the European Endangered Species Programme (EEP) for Amur tigers and his presence in our new Big Cat Habitat will certainly be a welcome sight for keepers, staff and visitors alike.”