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AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Five cheetah cubs were born at the National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute last week. You can't see them in person just yet, but you can watch them bond with their mom, Zura, on a 24-hour livestream.
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RASCOE: Their father, Flash, is not in the picture. Male cheetahs don't usually raise cubs. Cheetahs are considered a vulnerable species - not quite endangered, but there are less than 7,000 left in the wild. Before the cubs were born, there were about 30 cheetahs living at the Smithsonian's cheetah facilities in Front Royal, Virginia. They're trying to breed a sustainable cheetah population in North America. You can see the latest furry additions to those conservation efforts on the cheetah cub cam. If you're not hearing much, that's because Zura and her cubs are probably asleep. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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