Three white tiger cubs have made their first public appearance at a zoo in south-west China, delighting visitors.

The blue-eyed Bengal tiger triplets were born two-and-a-half months ago at the Yunnan Wildlife Park in Kunming city, marking an important step in the conservation of the rare animal.

A competition is being held during the country’s national holiday to name the three newborn cubs.

Video footage of the adorable cubs released by China News shows them sporting their iconic black stripes and white coats.

They were also filmed struggling to stay awake during their public debut as they tumble around in their enclosure.

The cubs are the newest addition to the six white tigers born last year at the zoo, according to the Yunnan Wildlife Park in a news release.

The new mother had some difficulty nursing the cubs on their own due to lack of experience and require assistance from the breeders, according to the zoo.

‘After taking care of the cubs for two-and-a-half months, the three white tigers are in good health and can carry out simple interactions with visitors,’ the Yunnan Wildlife Park said in their statement.

White tigers are a genetic variation of the better-known orange Bengal tigers.

A baby White Bengal tiger can only be born when both of its parents carry the rare gene, which turns up naturally about once per 10,000 births, according to Animal Corner.

There are only very few white tigers in the world – only about 250 in captivity.

Around 5,000 to 7,000 orange Bengal tigers live in the wild, down from 100,000 at the start of the 20th-century, according to Reuters.

Poaching, deforestation and over-hunting of their natural prey have hit their numbers.