NICARAGUA: Two endangered jaguar cubs have become the joy of the National Zoo of Nicaragua.

The female and male cubs were born on 18 May.

Because of their young age, both remain inside a closed enclosure with no direct sunlight with their mother, the zoo's veterinarian, Eduardo Sacasa, told Reuters on Monday, 11 July.

“We don't bother them a lot. Once they are three months old we'll be able to take them out to the patio because they'll be stronger. They completely rely on their mother, drinking her milk," said Sacasa.

The cubs are of the endangered jaguar species, Panthera onca, and are monitored 24 hours a day by their caretakers through video.

“They are in the appendix one of CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), they're in grave danger of extinction," added Sacasa. "That is why we need to take care of them, they are being killed. We need to conserve a genetic bank, which is what we want to do.”

Their names will be chosen by school children through a contest. The only condition is that they must be in the indigenous Nahuatl or Miskito languages.