Aksa, Batyr, Berk, Aiden: Leningrad ABBA! 🤩
Soon, Shu and Pepe's St. Petersburg quartet of manul kittens will turn six months old. The kittens have grown wonderfully (they are now almost indistinguishable from their mother in size!) and have eagerly begun trying on their first luxurious winter coats and, of course, testing their skills at such an important task as gaining weight before the winter 😄
As a reminder, all the kittens were given names with a Turkic flavor: the girl was named Aksa, and the boys were named Batyr, Berk, and Aiden.
To find out how these names came about and how they were chosen, watch the interview with Polina Kalinina, a zookeeper from Carnivorous Mammals Department at the Leningrad Zoo 👇️
And now, let's find out who's who, learn how to tell them apart, and admire each of them! 🤩
Aksa
The Turkic root “ak” means “white, light, pure.”
Little Aksa is the calmest and most diligent of the four. She likes to stay close to her mother and watch her attentively, learning feline arts and wisdom.
Aksa is easy to recognize by the large, bright single spot on her forehead, of which no one could speak more poetically than Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin: “And on her brow a star shines bright!”😻
Batyr
Perhaps the grumpiest, most fearless, and wildest of the four, he is vying for leadership of the gang. Well, that is only natural—the name carries expectations! 😎
Batyr is a Turkic male name as well as an ancient honorary title. It means “warrior,” “hero,” “brave fighter,” “daredevil.”
We recognize Batyr by the small black dot beneath his right eye, as well as by the distinctive, pronounced pattern on his forehead:
Berk
The name has Turkic roots and means “sturdy, mighty, steadfast, strong”—agree, it suits a manul perfectly and beautifully reflects the traits of this fluffy son of the steppes!
Berk is also a very nimble and active little floof!
We distinguish him by this pattern of dots:
Aiden
In Turkic, Aiden means “light, clear, radiant, illuminated by moonlight,” as well as “noble, enlightened.”
Judging by his little face and expression, Aiden seems to be the most cautious and calm (he-he!😈) of the boys.
We recognize him by the pattern of three relatively long black stripes on his forehead and his distinctive left eyebrow:
Soon, all four fluffballs will head off to their new homes, to other zoos across Russia. So don't miss the chance to visit the Leningrad Zoo to see the entire wonderful quartet of Pepe and Shu's manul kittens while they are still all living together!🧡
Huge thanks to the staff of the Leningrad Zoo for the information and wonderful videos, and Pavel Burov for his beautiful photographs of the minuls! 😃
Comments 38
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Delightful—I hope to see them on display ❤️
We visited the St. Petersburg family in August (twice, even). One of the very best memories of the summer and of this year 🥰
Wow! Shupeshek has been identified! 🔥👏 Thank you!
Дарья, how we didn't want to leave them...😍
Prrrrrrrrrrrrrr Thanks!
Дарья, It’s wonderful that you visited them! 😻
By the way, the other day I tried to identify the kittens in your photos on the website, but so far I’m not having much luck—I still don’t have enough familiarity with them 🤓 Well, I’ll try again!
Анна, Hooray! 😍
Hooray, we found out who’s who! 🤗 Thank you, Vika and Roma! ❤️
I’d already started grilling the zoo staff about when they’d match the photos with the names.))))
Vika Malyshkoverified_filled ,
During our visit, when the kittens were 3 months old, it seemed to me that the kitten with the most almond-shaped eyes was the largest and most active, while the most touching one, who resembled Namika, was the smallest and most cautious.
Now I understand that they were Batyr and Aiden, respectively)
Таша, Thank you! I’m glad too! 🤗
With great pleasure, today I gave the whole fluffy ABBA avatars on the website—it’s a delight to behold 😻
Hooray! I simply can’t put into words how grateful I am for this information! I subscribe to the Zoo Walks channel, and the regulars there gave the kittens temporary nicknames) For example, Aiden was nicknamed Namika’s Grandkitten, because as a baby he looked very much like Namika. Now the resemblance has faded a little, although his trademark slightly wistful look is still there🥰
Overall, I really like the kittens’ names. I saw disgruntled comments saying, “What, couldn’t they find any Russian names?” but I was pleased that, firstly, the names reference the region where they live, and secondly, that they are united by a common concept. Thanks to the creative staff at Lenzoo ❤️
lyrarin, I like them too! (Though names are inherently a tricky subject: there will always be those who like them and those who don't 🤗)
I especially like the name Batyr, I think. First, it sounds proud and powerful, and second, it seems to me that it really suits him! 🔥
They’re so cute!
I wonder which zoos all four of them will move to? We’ll be waiting for news!
Vika Malyshkoverified_filled ,
Yes, Batyr is a real Batyr!)
Дарья, Yep, got it! Thanks for clarifying, Darya 🤗
helga ingvar, Recently, the director of the Ulyanovsk Zoo said in an interview that they are expecting a manul kitten from the Leningrad Zoo.
Usually, zoos prefer to announce their own plans and new wards themselves, so yes, let’s wait—everything will be known soon! 🤗
Thank you so much for the detailed description and the wonderful news! I’d been so looking forward to the minuls’ names! Tomorrow I’m going to the zoo to admire these adorable little boxes once again!😍 Now I’ll know who’s who!
Мария, Excellent! Give our regards to the little boxes! 😃 Send photos—we'll be delighted!
Manulizationverified_filled ,
Yes, if I see them, I’ll definitely film them and post videos and photos! Even though their names are already known, to me they’re still Pepeshunchiki))
Pepesha is such an anxious mamanul 😆 And the little one holds his head like Papa Shu🥹
Excellent article! Please do more interviews with zoo staff. It seems they tend to stay in the shadows somehow, though I’m sure they have plenty of interesting things to tell.
John Walker, We are very happy that you enjoyed the article! And thanks to the Leningrad Zoo for the material and to Pavel for the photos 🤗
Indeed, not all zoo staff enjoy appearing in public, but there are also those who do.
Thank you for your feedback; we will do our best to provide more material like this! 🤓
It’s so wonderful that I managed to see everyone together. I wonder which new cities will be on the route of the manul pilgrimage across Russia. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for Perm 😀 It’s easy for me to get there.
Hooray!
Thank you for such a detailed description of the cats. And the kitty girls are beauties, too. I adore them all and boop their little noses 🤗
A Pocket Manual on Pepeshunkas 🤓
photo: Pavel Burov
I can't believe they're so big already... fluffed up and ready for their first winter! 💚💚💚
And the best photo of the kitties from the trip to Lenzoo (of course, taken on the fly at the last minute, when I was already supposed to be heading to the station, but decided I’d make the train, that I could survive without lunch, and anyway, there were kittens here, to hell with everything else, they had to be watched) is, unexpectedly, Aksa and Batyr. Such tender licking. I adore these two.
Officially. Aksa and Batyr are under my adoration.
To the Manulization Project
From Manulization Project participant Pavel Burov
STATEMENT
Please regard this as official notification that the manuls Aksa and Batyr, date and place of birth: May 8, 2026, Leningrad Zoo, parents: manul Shu and manul Pepe, are under my adoration indefinitely and unconditionally.
Signature / Printed name /
October 20, 2026
Pavel Burov, To project Manulization participant Pavel Burov
From the administration of the Manulization project
NOTICE OF ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICATION
We hereby confirm that the application submitted by Manulization project participant Pavel Burov for the perpetual and unconditional adoration of the manuls Aksa and Batyr, born on May 8, 2026, at the Leningrad Zoo, has been accepted, reviewed, and found to meet the high standards of manul devotion.
The application shall be kept in the Manul Archive of especially important manul documents with no limitation period.
The applicant's right to adore the aforementioned manuls is considered officially recorded and does not require annual renewal.
Respectfully,
Administration of the Manulization project
Signature / Printed name /
October 20, 2026
What adorable little bunnies!!!!
Tomorrow I’ll finally go see them; so far I’ve only seen poor, not very calm Pepesha on May 31.
I wonder how they’ll separate Aksu and Batyr—they’re practically inseparable, as I saw? This isn’t Mademoiselle Demonic Zhordelka for you)))
Amazing little purrballs!!
Aiden is such a little sweetheart, I just can’t 🥰 He’s the one I mistook for a girl when everyone still thought there were two little girls in the quartet. The Namichka line has revealed itself in all its glory. And who will this cutie end up with?😭
Алина, Have a wonderful trip to the zoo, and give our regards to the entire fluffy manul family!😍
Алина, Hello to the whole family!
Special greetings to Aksa and Batyr, without fail.
And we’re professionally hiding our envy, just so you know.
lyrarin, By the way, right at the beginning of the video, during the interview with Polina Kalinina, it is Aiden who is looking through the window 😃
Manulizationverified_filled ,
In the next shot, Pepe and Berk, right? Then Berk (?) leaves, comes back out, lies down; someone runs across the little door and runs away. Then Pepe runs off, and the interview begins.
Pavel Burov, Yes! And then Aksa too, when Polina says that the girl ended up alone 😃
Self-quoting.
Thank you so much. So much joy from those little faces. They are so tiny and fragile, yet already have so much character, individuality and, forgive me, charisma. It is impossible not to fall in love with the cultured fluff gang from St. Petersburg†
And this is exactly what is needed right now. No scratches on the soul will ever heal over; time does not heal. Only new love gives us the strength to go on living. It is the eternal cycle of life: some leave, making way for others. The Wheel of Samsara grinds eras to dust. We are temporary passengers on its rim. And we love cats. Which means today is a good day.
† Especially Aksu and Batyr.