THE arrival of two cheetahs at Billabong Zoo is a shot in the arm for tourism, just in time for the school holidays.
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Cheetahs Vongani and Warrior are already a hit with visitors.
Billabong Zoo's Mark Stone said Vongani, which means to give thanks, is a charismatic ladies' man, while his brother Warrior is a real sook and a cutie.
The public got its first look at the cheetahs on Monday when Port Macquarie MP Leslie Williams officially opened the zoo's African section.
Mr Stone said the addition of cheetahs at the zoo would help raise awareness about the animals' plight in the wild.
The population has dwindled from an estimated 100,000 at the turn of the century to about 10,000.
South Africa is home to fewer than 1500 cheetahs.
Vongani and Warrior travelled from Cheetah Outreach in South Africa to their new home with one month in quarantine at Mogo Zoo on the south coast.
Mr Stone said it was a massive project to bring the cheetahs to the zoo with discussions dating back more than two-and-a-half years.
Billabong Zoo attracts about 100,000 people a year.
The zoo will analyse the cheetahs' impact on visitor numbers.
"If it's anything like the snow leopards, we had more than a 60 per cent increase in turnover through the Christmas school holidays with the arrival of the snow leopards," Mr Stone said.
Port Macquarie MP Leslie Williams said Billabong Zoo was renowned for what it brought to our tourism industry.
"They just continue to raise the bar and we are seeing this with the new cheetahs, Vongani and Warrior," she said.
Billabong Zoo is raising money and boosting awareness for Cheetah Outreach which promotes the survival of the free ranging, Southern African cheetahs through environmental education and delivering conservation initiatives.
