Luoyang, a city in Central China's Henan province, boasts a total of 33 South China tigers in zoos, leading other cities for five consecutive years, according to data released by the Chinese Association of Zoological Gardens.

A newly-born South China tiger cub playfully gnaws a leg at the Wangcheng Zoo in Luoyang, Central China's Henan province, Nov 27, 2018.

A total of 178 South China tigers, a critically endangered species endemic in China and is extinct in the wild, have been raised in 17 zoos in 16 cities across the country.

This year, 10 new tiger cubs were born in Luoyang.

A South China tiger sets a determined pace as it walks through its habitat at the Wangcheng Zoo in Luoyang, Central China's Henan province, Nov 27, 2018. (Photos: China Daily)