A Seattleite is back home.
Tandie, an 8-year-old lion born at the Woodland Park Zoo, returned to his birthplace Friday.
He had been living at the Oakland Zoo since 2016. His name means "fire," the Seattle zoo said, and he enjoys eating various meats and blood popsicles.
"Tandie is known for being a thoughtful, smart lion," the zoo said in a statement. "He is acclimating to his new home and getting to know his animal keepers, and should be viewable to the public soon."
He will live in the zoo's African Savanna lion habitat with a 5-year-old lioness named Ilanga. Keepers aren't currently recommending them for breeding, the zoo said.
Tandie was born to Adia and Xerxes. Xerxes, the father and a Woodland Park Zoo resident, was euthanized this year because of age-related kidney failure.
"Having one of his cubs return to Woodland Park Zoo is truly remarkable," Martin Ramirez, mammal curator of the zoo, said in a statement. "Tandie has such a bright future here and we look forward to getting to know him better."
The zoo recently had a feline resident move to international lands. Five-year-old lioness Kamaria, Ilanga's sister, moved to Zoo de Granby in Quebec, Canada, Oct. 17. She was known for being "playful and inquisitive," said the Seattle zoo's lead animal keeper, Christine Anne.
The sisters arrived at the Woodland Park Zoo in 2019 "under a breeding recommendation with male lion Xerxes," but breeding wasn't successful, according to the zoo. She will be introduced to another lion in Quebec as recommended by the African Lion Species Survival Plan, a breeding program, the Seattle zoo said.
