Three Sumatran tiger cubs – two males and one female – are growing up at the Attica Zoological Park, in the Gialou area of Spata. They were born in early July to Tomba and Argos, who has since died of cancer. The three cubs are his last litter. The park presented them to the public on 8 September, the day of their first veterinary check-up.
The Sumatran tiger lives only on the Indonesian island of the same name and is considered critically endangered. It is estimated that there are around 400 left in the wild. The main threats are deforestation, poaching and conflicts with humans.
The first check
On 8 September, the park’s vets examined the three cubs, fitted them with microchips and gave them their first vaccinations. The procedure was not easy, as the park’s zoo and wildlife vet, Arsinoe Psaroudaki, told the Associated Press: ‘Tigers do not like being handled. They are very wild.” She added that it is a moving experience to work with the rarest species of tiger in the world.
The park’s head keeper of felines and primates, Theodoros Babilis, explained that the Sumatran tiger is one of the most endangered species of tiger, and indeed of the felid family in general. That is why, he said, zoos in Europe and elsewhere maintain a safety population, so that one day the species can be reintroduced into the wild. Every healthy birth in a zoo counts towards this population.
Names from the Odyssey
The cubs do not yet have names. According to the park’s staff, they will be named after characters from Homer’s Odyssey. Three months after their birth, the park has not announced either their names or when visitors will be able to see them.
The same park is also home to MOm’s rehabilitation centre for Mediterranean monk seals, where Alexis, the orphaned seal pup from Spetses, is currently recovering.
How to get there
The Attica Zoological Park is open all year round, every day from 9.00 am until sunset. A standard ticket costs 25 euros and a child’s ticket (aged 3–12) 19 euros, whilst children under 3 years old enter free of charge. Those over 65, students and the unemployed pay 17 euros. A family ticket for two parents and two children costs 70 euros, and an annual pass costs 65 euros for adults and 55 euros for children. People with a disability of 67 per cent or more pay 5 euros.
Source: Attica Zoological Park, press release dated 8 September 2026 and statements to the Associated Press; atticapark.com (opening hours and prices).
