AUCKLAND CITY COUNCIL

MEDIA RELEASE

16 May 2007

Vodafone Warriors take on real tigers at Auckland Zoo

The Vodafone Warriors will tackle two very different tigers this weekend when they play the Wests Tigers (Sunday) and get up-close and personal with Auckland Zoo’s male Sumatran tige,r Oz (Saturday).

Michael Crockett, along with other non-playing Warriors, and the Vodafone Cheerleaders, will be in the zoo between 11am and 2pm on Saturday, 19 May. Members of the public can come along, meet their league heroes, enjoy a cheerleading demonstration and clinic, get some great giveaways and be in to win fabulous prizes. The league stars will go behind the scenes to meet the zoo’s male tiger, Oz, and assist keepers with a tiger encounter – to be held at noon.

While New Zealand league fans will no doubt be hoping the Wests Tigers will face extinction at the hands of the Warriors, it is real tigers who are in the greatest danger of being completely wiped out. With less than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild, this beautiful big-cat faces the real possibility of extinction by 2020. Auckland Zoo, though its Conservation Fund, assists the plight of the Sumatran tiger by contributing to the 21st Century Tiger project – Kerinci Seblat National Park, public education and a regional captive breeding programme. A female Sumatran tiger – Molek, the zoo’s other tiger – has been matched to mate with Oz to assist this programme.

A great way to support the plight of Sumatran tigers is to take part in a behind the scenes Big Cat Zoom Tour, taking in lions, cheetahs and of course, tigers.

Event information
Vodafone Warriors and Cheerleaders are in the Zoo between 11am and 2pm Saturday 19 May. Tiger encounter at noon and cheerleading demonstration at 11.30am and cheerleading clinic at 1pm.

Normal zoo admission prices apply.

Big Cat Zoom Tour Information
Tour launches Saturday,19 May and runs every second Saturday between 10am and 3.30pm. $300per person, including lunch. Bookings essential. Phone (09) 360 4700 for more information on this and other Zoom Tours.

Ends

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