MIAMI – A cheetah cub joined Zoo Miami’s ambassador team nearly two months ago, Zoo Miami Communications Director Ron Magill confirmed in a press release on Friday.
The zoo welcomed the arrival of Winston Eugene Portland III on June 14.
According to Magill, Winston was born at Wildlife Safari in Winston, Oregon on May 9. His full name is a tribute to the cities that played a role in his life as he traveled through them in Oregon during his trip to Miami.
As per the recommendation of the Cheetah Species Survival Plan (SSP), Winston and his littermates have been selected to become ambassadors for their species at different zoos around the country, the press release stated.
According to Zoo Miami, the Cheetah SSP is a group of professional experts that provide recommendations in the management of a species under human care to maintain a genetically diverse, demographically varied and biologically sound population.
Magill said upon Winston’s arrival, he was secluded in a quarantine area where he received a series of tests and exams to help ensure that he was healthy and developing normally. During that time, Winton was carefully monitored and cared for by a team of Animal Science and Animal Health experts as they slowly acclimated him to his new surroundings and prepared him for his future role as an ambassador animal.
“We are happy to announce that Winston has now successfully cleared quarantine and will soon be making public appearances on a random basis as the staff prepares him for his role as a future star of the Zoo Miami Ambassador Team. He will be the successor to our present cheetah ambassadors, Koda and Diesel, who are getting up in age and will be looking at retirement in the not-too-distant future,” said Magill.
The Zoo Miami Cheetah Ambassador Program, which was established more than 20 years ago, has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to directly support cheetah conservation efforts in the wild.
Magill said it is hoped that Winston will play a major role in supporting those efforts.
According to Magill, Winston is still not able to be seen by the public but will begin to make random public appearances in the near future.
Zoo Miami sent video to Local 10 News of Winston getting used to his new surroundings, which you can watch at the top of the page.
View more pictures of Winston below.