TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taipei Zoo announced Monday that it is working with Singapore’s Mandai Wildlife Reserve on Malayan tiger conservation.
The zoo’s tiger, Serikin, was flown to Singapore in February and, after a 30-day quarantine, has begun adapting to her new surroundings. Zookeeper Cheng Shu-wen (鄭淑文) told CNA that Serikin is a gentle and quiet tigress, with a voice unusually low for a female.
Cheng said Serikin primarily eats chicken, bone-in beef, and occasionally lamb. Tigers are solitary animals and typically not housed together, though she has not shown negative interactions with other tigers.
Serikin was born in 2019. She arrived in Taipei in 2025 along with another 4-year-old female Malayan tiger, Shima. The pair came from Le Parc des Felins, east of Paris, as part of a global tiger survival plan.
The program was coordinated by Kathy Traylor-Holzer, population management consultant for the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. After nearly a year of acclimation in Taipei Zoo’s tropical rainforest area, Serikin was sent to Singapore for breeding.
Tigers are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with Malayan tigers categorized as critically endangered. The zoo hopes the program will support new breeding pairs and strengthen genetic diversity.
