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PHOTOS: Two Snow Leopard Cubs Born at Chicago's Brookfield Zoo

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A pair of panda cubs—one male and one female—were recently born at the Schonbrunn Zoo in Vienna, Austria. (Schönbrunn Zoo)

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A pair of panda cubs—one male and one female—were recently born at the Schonbrunn Zoo in Vienna, Austria. (Schönbrunn Zoo)

Two female snow leopards await their debut at Brookfield Zoo after their birth on June 16.

The cubs, who were born to the 4-year-old Sarani, each weigh about 10 pounds at 2 1/2 months. The two will likely make their first public appearance in mid-October, according to the Chicago Zoological Society's website.

Mother Sarani and her 5-year-old mate, Sabu, have been living at Brookfield Zoo, located in the Chicago suburb of Brookfield, Illinois, since 2011. Sarani previously resided at Tautphaus Park Zoo in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Sabu lived at Cape May County Park and Zoo in Cape May Court House, New Jersey.

The two newborn cubs are not Sarani and Sabu's first litter — the pair mated once before and produced Everest, a male snow leopard born in summer 2013, now located at Lincoln Children's Zoo in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Snow leopards are found in the mountianous regions of central Asia. An endangered species, the snow leopard population is estimated at between 4,000 and 6,500 in the wild, according to The Snow Leopard Trust, a conservation organization for the big cats. Poaching, sparse prey and residential and commercial development contribute to the species' decline.

Due, in part, to their status as endangered animals, as well as their prefered remote habitat, the cats are extremely elusive to photographers and explorers when sought in the wild. According to Smithsonian.com, snow leopards were not photographed in their natural habitat until the 1970s.

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