Monarto Safari Park is celebrating its most successful Spotted Hyena breeding season, with the birth of another litter of twins bringing the cub count to five!

Three-year-old female hyena, Fahari, is the latest clan member to become a mum, giving birth to twins on 5 March.

Carnivore keeper Kat Ferres said this is Fahari’s first litter and she is doing a fantastic job of nurturing the little ones.

“We’re always a little bit nervous for our first time mums but Fahari is doing an amazing job, we couldn’t ask for anything better!” said Kat.

The team have been closely monitoring Fahari via a den cam and are thrilled to see the cubs suckling and becoming more and more adventurous.

“Spotted Hyena cubs are very active from day one. They’re born with their eyes open and with teeth.

“The twins have already started to follow mum around and out of the den. They’ve seen dad next door and our matriarch Kanzi, so they’re starting to meet the rest of the clan. Everything is going really well!”

The new arrivals come after Spotted Hyena Kanzi gave birth to twins in January and Forest gave birth to a single cub last November.

“This is the first time we’ve had this many mums and cubs at the same time. It’s great that we’ve got such a beautiful facility where we can breed so many of these amazing animals.

“It’s a crazy busy time with so many babies, but we’re loving every moment!” said Kat.

At two-months-old, Kanzi’s twins have now reached another big milestone and have aced their first health check.

The expert vet team carefully weighed and vaccinated the cubs and undertook a thorough physical examination, checking over sharp teeth, paws and claws. The little cubs weigh in at 5.9kg and 6.9kg.

“They look fantastic, our vet Jerome gave them a big tick of approval!”

The team also took DNA samples to confirm the sex of the cubs. DNA will be sent to Serengeti Hyena Research Group in Berlin who will confirm whether the twins are male or female.

The little ones were held in cosy bags to keep both the cubs and our team safe during the check-up.

The Spotted Hyena population is currently faring well in the wild, but persecutions by humans and habitat loss remains a real threat to the species. With an estimated 27,000 to 47,000 Spotted Hyena remaining in the wild, every birth is important in ensuring the species thrives for generations to come.

“Spotted Hyenas are a bit of a misunderstood animal, everyone associates them with movies where they haven’t been portrayed well. For us, it’s really amazing that we can educate people to learn to love them, they are very intelligent and very affectionate animals,” finished Kat.

The five cubs will remain in separate private dens while they grow in both size and confidence, however hyena lovers might be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the new arrivals while visiting the dens on the Lions at Bedtime experience.

You can still get your cub fix on the Zu-loop bus this Easter, spotting Cheetah cubs and African Lion cubs exploring the public habitats! Monarto Safari Park and Adelaide Zoo are 365 days, including Easter.