TWO 'critically endangered' leopards will be making a new home at Colchester Zoo.

Two Amur leopards, a male called Crispin arriving from Czech Republic and a female named Esra from Belgium, will be arriving soon.

They will take over from the current Amur leopards, Milena and Sayan, who will be moving to their new home together shortly.

Milena arrived in 2006 and Sayan joined her in 2009.

Both cats joined following a breeding recommendation and it was hoped that they would successfully breed.

Amur leopards are only mixed when the females come into season, unfortunately after many attempts Milena has not particularly warmed to Sayan.

It is hoped when they move to their new home, a different environment may result in successful breeding.

Before the new Amur leopards arrive, the zoo will be carrying out some maintenance work on the Leopards at Ussuri Falls enclosure so the new leopards can get to know each other through the mesh of their enclosure.

Once the new arrivals have settled in, it is hoped they become a breeding pair.

This is particularly important for this species as they are classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, with only 35 remaining in the wild.