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Two cheetahs born in Britain will be released into the wild in South Africa next month in a world first for wildlife conservation .
Brothers Saba and Nairo were born at Port Lympne in Kent and have spent the first two and a half years of their life in the county's Howletts Wild Animal Park.
It will be the first time cheetahs raised in captivity have left the UK for re-wilding in Africa, according to The Daily Telegraph .
The cheetahs will leave the UK on 6 February and will be flown to a sanctuary in Western Cape before moving to Mount Camdeboo Private Game Reserve, a 35,000 acre site in Great Karoo.
They will undergo a re-wilding programme developed by the Ashia Cheetah Sanctuary, which has seen nine captive-born cheetahs successfully released into the wild since beginning in 2018.
Show all 17 1 /17World's most endangered animals World's most endangered animals Amur Leopard Endemic to the far east of Russia, the Amur Leopard has a population of around 84 and is critically endangered. Here follows every species that the WWF lists as critically endangered.
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World's most endangered animals Sumatran Elephant The Sumatran elephant population now stands at only 2400-2800
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World's most endangered animals Yangtze Finless Porpoise Endemic to China's Yangtze River, the Yangtze finless porpoise has an estimated population of 1000-1800
Kenichi Nobusue
World's most endangered animals South China Tiger When discovered in the 1950s, the South China tiger population was estimated to be 4000, by 1996 it was estimated to be only 30-80. Scientists consider the tiger to be "functionally extinct" as one has not been sighted for over 25 years
World's most endangered animals Sumatran Orangutan The Sumatran orangutan was once found across the island of Sumatra and even further south on Java. Today it is found only in the island's north and its population stands at 14,613
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World's most endangered animals Western Lowland Gorilla Though it is the most populous of all gorilla subspecies, the western lowland gorilla is still critically endangered and its population has declined by 60% in the last quarter century
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World's most endangered animals Sumatran Rhinoceros The Sumatran rhinoceros is the smallest of the surviving rhinoceros species. Only 80 are known to be living today. The last male Sumatran rhino in Malaysia died on 28 May 2019
Willem V Strien
World's most endangered animals Sumatran Tiger There are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left today. They are severely threatened by deforestation and poaching
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World's most endangered animals Eastern Lowland Gorilla Half of the rainforest of the Democratic Republic of Congo in which these gorillas live has been destroyed the past 50 years. There were 17,000 Eastern Lowland gorillas in the 1990s but scientists estimate their population has declined by over 50% since then
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World's most endangered animals Vaquita The world's rarest marine animal has a population of only 30. They were discovered in 1958 and are endemic to Mexico's Gulf of California
Paula Olson / NOAA
World's most endangered animals Javan Rhino The most threatened of all rhino species, there are only an estimated 58-68 Javan rhinos left
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World's most endangered animals Saola The saola was first sighted in 1992, being the first large mammal to be discovered in over 50 years. Scientists have only sighted saola in the wild four times and it is considered critically endangered
World's most endangered animals Malayan Tiger The Malayan Tiger population now stands at only 250-300
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World's most endangered animals Hawksbill Turtle The population of the Hawksbill Turtle has declined by more than 80% in the last century. They are threatened by black market poachers who kill them for their shell
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World's most endangered animals Black Rhino The population of the black rhino dropped by 98% in the years 1960-1995 due to poaching, it stands today at around 5000
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World's most endangered animals Cross River Gorilla The population of the Cross River gorilla has been damaged by deforestation and poaching, it now stands at 200-300
Julie Langford
World's most endangered animals Bornean Orangutan The population of the Bornean orangutan has been reduced by over 50% in the past 60 years, now standing at around 104,700. Their habitat has been reduced by at least 50% in the 21st century
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Cheetahs are classed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature , with fewer than 7000 remaining in the wild .
Additional reporting by Press Association
![Brothers Saba [L] and Nairo will leave the UK on 6 February](https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2020/01/23/15/cheetah-release-comp.jpg)
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