Visitors to Port Lympne wildlife park can help name two cheetah cubs next week.

The park is running the competition during the school half-term holiday week, from this Saturday.

The winning entrant will have the exclusive opportunity to enjoy and encounter with the southern cheetah family.

Rich Barn, head big cat keeper, said: “This is an exciting and rare opportunity for people to choose the names.

“As southern cheetahs are native to Africa, we are particularly looking for great southern African or Zulu names.”

The two cubs are part of a litter born in the animal park near Hythe last autumn, which was the first there in almost 30 years.

Cheetahs have a conservation status of vulnerable in the wild.

They are found in isolated pockets across Africa and Asian and conserving them is difficult due to the scattered distribution of the species in the wild.

These animals face habitat loss and most of the existing protected areas are not presently large enough to ensure the long term survival of cheetahs.

For further details on the competition call the animal park on 0844 842 4647.