Introduction
here are several sub species of tiger, all of them endangered. One, the Siberian tiger is the largest cat in the world and can weigh as much as 380kg. In its cold home it develops a thick layer of fat to insulate it against the harshness of winter. Because food is scarce the solitary predator often travels great distances in search of food.
The Indian or Bengal tiger is the most numerous of the tigers. Like most big tigers, it marks territory by scent-marking the boundaries with urine. The tiger also scratches trees to inform others of its presence.
The territory of a male Bengal tiger will overlap with those of two or three females and he will challenge other males who try to mate with them. The female alone rears the cubs who will stay with her until they are about two years of age. During this time she will teach them to hunt and fend for themselves. Tigers live about 15 years of age in the wild.
The Body of a Tiger
dult male tigers weigh about 190 kg and are about 3.5 m long, including a tail of almost 1 m. Females weigh about 135 kg and are slightly smaller. The tiger’s coat ranges from brownish-yellow to orange-red and is marked by black stripes. The stripes differ greatly in length, width, and spacing. The fur on the throat, belly, and insides of the legs is whitish. Many tigers have a ruff of hair around the sides of the head, but the hair is not so long as the mane of lions. The tigers of Manchuria, in northern China, where the winters are bitterly cold, have long, shaggy, winter coats.
The tiger looks different from the lion because of the stripes and more colourful coat. But the two animals have similar bodies. In fact, tigers and lions have mated in zoos. The offspring are called tiglons, tigons, or ligers.
How a Tiger Hunts
The tiger usually hunts at night, wandering over animal trails and along stream beds. A tiger depends on its sharp eyes and keen ears, but it may also use its sense of smell. The tiger, waiting in cover, rushes at its prey in a series of bounds. Using its sharp claws, the tiger grasps its victim by the rump or side and pulls it into the ground. The tiger’s teeth are well suited both for holding prey and for tearing off chunks of meat.
Tigers are extremely swift for short distances and can leap nearly 9 m. But if a tiger fails to catch its prey quickly, it usually will give up because it soon tires. As long as a week may go by without a successful hunt. After a kill, the tiger drags the carcass (dead body) to thick cover, preferably near water. The muscles of the tiger’s neck, shoulders, and forelegs are very powerful. A tiger may drag the body of a 230 kg young water buffalo 0.5 km. The tiger stays near the carcass until it has eaten everything except the bones and stomach. A tiger may eat 23 kg of meat in a night. A long drink and a nap often follow the meal.
Tigers are good swimmers and may swim across rivers or from one island to another in search of prey. On hot days, they may go into the water to cool off. Tigers can climb trees, but they do not usually do so.
The Life of a Tiger
Many adult males claim a territory as their own and keeps other males out. The territory may cover from about 65 to 650 square km or more, depending on the amount of prey available. Tigers communicate by many sounds, including a roar that can be heard from 3 km or more.
A tigress can bear her first cubs when she is 3½ to 4 years old. The cubs are helpless and weigh about 1 to 1½ kg at birth. Tiger cubs, like kittens, are playful. But their life is hazardous, and about half die before they are a year old. The cubs cannot kill enough for themselves until they are more than a year old. Even then, they cannot kill a large animal. The mother may teach her cubs how to kill by providing a living animal for then to attack. Cubs become independent when they are about 2 years old.
The Rare Tiger
The other five subspecies are all endangered, threatened by hunting and loss of forest habitat. There are fewer than 400 Siberian tigers in the wild, mainly in the territory covered by the Old Soviet Union. The Chinese tiger is even rarer, with an estimated 50 in the wild and another 50 held in zoos in China. There are about 2000 Indochinese tigers, of which about 600 are in Malaysia, and 500 in Thailand. The Sumatra tiger is widely distributed on the island of Sumatra and numbers about 1000. The Indian tiger has increased its numbers since the mid-1980’s to about 4.400.
