The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum’s two rescued mountain lion cubs have officially received their names — Moonbead and Pretzel — thanks to a partnership that gave children facing serious illnesses the opportunity to leave a lasting mark on two of the museum’s newest animal ambassadors.
The names were unveiled after children participating in Tucson-based Beads of Courage submitted dozens of creative suggestions before voting for their favorites. The opportunity was made possible by an anonymous donor who won the cubs’ naming rights during the Desert Museum’s annual Desert Gala and chose to share the honor with the nonprofit organization that supports children coping with serious illnesses.
Lynnae Wenker, the museum’s director of philanthropy, said what began as a fundraising opportunity quickly evolved into something much more meaningful.
“We’re always looking for new, creative and meaningful ways to have the community support the Desert Museum,” Wenker said. “This transformed into a partnership where these children had a chance to participate in learning more about nature while naming these cubs.”
As a nonprofit organization, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum relies on donations and fundraising to support animal care, conservation, education and scientific research, Wenker said.
Each spring, the museum hosts the Desert Gala, where supporters bid on auction items to benefit the institution. This year, naming rights for the newly rescued mountain lion cubs became one of the featured auction items.
The winning bidder chose to remain anonymous but asked that the naming opportunity instead be shared with children participating in Beads of Courage.
“We thought it was really meaningful to auction off the naming rights because that support goes directly into funding the care of animals like these cubs, as well as the museum’s broader work in conservation, education and science,” Wenker said.
She said the partnership also aligns with the museum’s mission of inspiring appreciation for the Sonoran Desert while building meaningful community connections.
“Creating meaningful connections between children and wildlife is a really important part of the Desert Museum’s mission,” Wenker said. “This was a special opportunity to connect with another nonprofit that’s doing great work in our community.”
The children submitted dozens of imaginative names before selecting Moonbead and Pretzel.
“The community is just as excited about them as we are,” Wenker said. “People love both the rescue story and the fact that children helped name them.”
The mountain lion brothers arrived at the museum earlier this year after wildlife officials in Washington determined they could not be returned to the wild.
Shawnee Riplog-Peterson, the museum’s curator of mammalogy and ornithology, said the cubs, now about 7 months old, were found near the Washington-Idaho border after state wildlife officials determined their mother was no longer caring for them.
“Mountain lion females don’t abandon their cubs unless something has happened to them,” Riplog-Peterson said. “They had definitely been watching the situation and found these cubs were just not getting fed.”
The Desert Museum agreed to provide the brothers with a permanent home. After arriving in Arizona, the cubs underwent veterinary examinations before spending nearly two months acclimating behind the scenes.
“They learned the sounds of what the exhibit might sound like, got acclimated to the foods we were feeding them and started to shift perfectly,” Riplog-Peterson said.
Staff gradually introduced the cubs to their public habitat by allowing them to explore the exhibit before calling them back inside with food.
“We let them out, called them back in with food, let them out and called them back in with food again,” Riplog-Peterson said. “They’re very food-motivated, so they know only good things happen in the back area.”
Now fully acclimated, Moonbead and Pretzel spend their days climbing, wrestling, exploring and cooling off in the exhibit’s moat.
“They’re just exploring machines,” Riplog-Peterson said. “They’re playing, swimming in the moat and chasing each other.”
She said the brothers have quickly become favorites because many of their behaviors resemble those of household cats.
“That’s all you hear from people,” Riplog-Peterson said. “’My cat does the exact same thing.’”
Beyond entertaining guests, the young mountain lions serve an important educational purpose.
As apex predators, mountain lions help regulate deer populations and maintain healthy ecosystems throughout the Southwest. Habitat fragmentation, vehicle collisions and hunting remain among the biggest challenges facing wild populations.
“They’re apex predators, so they really help with deer populations,” Riplog-Peterson said. “They’re incredibly adaptable and can handle everything from grasslands to mountainous terrain.”
She hopes the cubs will inspire visitors to appreciate and protect native wildlife.
“I hope people leave with a real appreciation for wildlife,” Riplog-Peterson said. “It’s going to be exciting for visitors to watch them grow.”
Wenker said the museum is equally excited to watch the brothers mature into ambassadors for their species.
“We’re really excited to watch them grow and develop new skills and become two great ambassadors for our organization,” she said. “We were fortunate to receive them as a bonded pair at such a young age, and we have their whole lives ahead of us.”
Moonbead and Pretzel are on exhibit daily in the museum’s Mountain Woodland Exhibit, where visitors can watch the rescued brothers grow while learning about one of the Sonoran Desert’s most iconic predators.
