General manager Trent Russell said yesterday Asta - part lion, part tiger - defied the expected 15-year life span of most big cats, living until he was 22.

''Asta was really lovely, just like a big pussy cat,'' he said.

Asta passed away from old age late last month, surrounded by his keepers, who made sure he was comfortable in his last days.

''It is an extremely sad moment for staff, as we all become very attached to the animals,'' he said.

Brother and sister tigons Asta and Tangier arrived at the zoo almost eight years ago after retiring from a national circus company. They quickly became well known here.

Asta and Tangier weighed in at 172kg and 168kg respectively at their peaks and were an interesting mix of spots when they were young and stripes as they grew older.

Mr Russell said their best attribute was their ''bilingual ability''.

''They can vocalise in both a roar and a loud meow,'' he said.

The zoo and its owners were criticised at the time for taking the tigons, with many believing it was inappropriate considering the animals do not exist in the wild.

Zoo owner Richard Tindale had a different view on the subject, saying at the time, ''These two animals did exist and if we didn't provide them with a home they would have been put down''.

Mr Russell is not sure he would take hybrids again, saying it would depend on the circumstances.

''They have a very high infertility rate, but having said that, out of all the big cats, Asta had the best personality by far,'' he said.

The animals remained playful almost throughout their lives and rarely fought.

Despite tigons being less common than other big cat hybrid breeds, Mr Russell does not believe the passing of their famous cat will have an impact on zoo visitors. ''... I don't think his death will affect the number of visitors at the zoo. People will still come here for the same reasons they always came here.''