(Copy below from KENS5 San Antonio)

From the king of the jungle to the king of cute, three baby lion cubs are the new rising stars of the Japanese zoo world.

The three cubs, named Karl, Mimee and Neymee were born last month at the Kamine Zoo, located north of Tokyo and have become instant hits with the public.

These tiny kitties have just learned to purr and waddle about as they make their first baby steps in becoming the king of the jungle.

Each cub now has been growing quickly thanks to the extra care given by the zookeepers.

While some other animals may pout at all the fuss surrounding him, the triplets may deserve most of it.

"They grow up quick. We hope visitors can see them while they're still this cute. For the time being, we hope to have them do their best as the star of Kamine Zoo," zoo director Nobutaka Namae told Reuters.

This is the first time a baby lion has been born at this zoo.

Ever since their first public appearance on November 22, all three cubs have been clawing in the visitors - both young and old.

"They're really cute because you don't get a chance to see them that often and because they're really rare," 10-year-old zoo visitor Maru Kobayashi told Reuters while watching the lions in their enclosure.

Even human babies thought their lion counterparts were cute.

"The babies are cute," said 2-year-old Hikari Sekiya, while holding onto her own mother.

Many have come to Kamine especially for the new-borns.

"They're really cute aren't they? I heard they were just born and so came here to take pictures of them," said 64-year-old Takeo Arakawa while holding his camera and taking pictures of the cubs.

Despite the special enclosure, Kamine Zoo says they try to keep human contact with the cubs to a minimum.

They are breast fed by their mother and only their allocated handlers are allowed to touch the cubs.