About tiger

Tigers:

Tigers are the biggest cats in the world. They live in wet, humid and hot jungles as well as icy cold forests. There are five different kinds or subspecies of tiger which are still alive today. These tigers are called Siberian, Indochinese, South China, Bengal, and Sumatran. Their Latin name is Panthera tigris.

Tigers are an endangered species; only about 4,870 to 7,300 tigers are left in the wild. Three tiger subspecies, which are now extinct are: the Bali, Javan, and Caspian tigers. They have become so over the last 70 years..

People admire the tiger for its strength and beauty, but they fear it because they are known to kill human beings, yet almost all-wild tigers avoid people.

Probably only 3 or 4 out of every 1000 tigers eat people and most of these are sick or wounded animals, that can no longer hunt large prey. Wild tigers are found mostly in India. Until the 1800’s many lived throughout most of the southern half of the continent.

 
Tigers are generally solitary, territorial animals, with the range of one male overlapping that of several females. Females in estrus spray pheromone-rich urine on trees and others natural "signposts", alerting nearby males to their reproductive status. Through loud moaning calls, the prospective mates find each other.

Females give birth on average to two to three cubs (only one or two survive to maturity), and over the next several years teach them the hunting skills they will need to survive. At two to three years of age, the cubs establish their own territories. Daughters tend to settle near their mother, sons disperse greater distances.

Types of tigers

Different Types Of Tigers:

• There are five tiger subspecies including the Indian or Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) - it is a powerful animal with very distinct markings. they .breed at any time of the year.

• Siberian or Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) - It is the largest type of all tigers, with an average length of 2.8 meters. It is some what pale in colour having fever stripes and a longer and thicker coat in winter. They have their cubs during the spring.
  
  Sumatran tiger(Panthera tigris sumatrae)
  
  South China tiger (Panthera tigris amoyensis)
  
  Indochinese tiger (Panthera tigris corbetti)
  
  There are 3 extinct subspecies, the
  
   Bali tiger (Panthera tigris balica)
  
   Javan tiger (Panthera tigris sondaicus)
  
   Caspian tiger (Panthera tigris virgat)

White Tigers. 

• All the white tigers we know of are a color variation of Bengal tigers. White tigers are only born to parents that both carry the recessive gene for white coloring. Wild white tigers are very rare, and today they can only be seen in zoos.

• The white tigers are neither albinos (in which case they would have pink eyes), nor a separate species; they have chocolate stripes and blue eyes, although several variations in eye and stripe color are seen.

• The first mutant 'white' cub is believed to be the one trapped by the Maharaja of Rewa, who found it orphaned in the jungle in 1951. Named Mohan, the cub was later . mated to a normal-colored captive tigress who produced three litters with normal coloring.

• A few years later, Mohan mated with one of the offspring, producing the first litter of white cubs-these were to be the ancestors of others now in many zoos the world over.
  
  

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Distribution

Tigers used to range over much of Asia. There were eight separate sub-species. At the beginning of the l9th Century there were about 100,000 tigers in the world. Today the outlook for the Tiger is very bleak. Although no thorough census has been conducted, it is estimated the world population of tigers is less than 8,000.

Indian Tiger-White Tigers

White Tigers:

• White tigers are very rarely found in the wild. In about 100 yeas only 12 white tigers have been seen in the wild in India. They are almost extinct and most of the ones living are in captivity, mostly in zoos.

• This specific tiger is neither an albino nor a seperate subspecies of the tiger. They are beautifully white colored and have black stripes. It has blue eyes and a pink nose. It also has white colored fur. The white tiger is born to a bengal tiger that has the gene needed for white coloring. A pure white tiger has no stripes and are totally white.
  

Pristine wildness !

• The striking white coat is caused by a double recessive allele in the genetic code, and only turns up naturally about once in every 10,000 births. Amazingly, the Bengal tiger is the only subspecies in which it seems to happen. As beautiful as it may look, life as a white tiger can't be easy when your life depends on being able to hide from and/or sneak up on things.
  
  

Habitat & Range:

• Tigers usually stay in an area from about 10 to 30 square miles where there is enough prey, cover/shelter and water to support them. Territory actually depends on the amount of prey that is available. The more concentrated the prey the smaller an area a tiger needs to survive.

Life span:

• White tigers in the wild live to be about 10 to 15 years while tigers in zoos usually live between 16 and 20 years.

Diet:

• Tigers do not hunt in social groups like lions. They are generally solitary animals. In the wild, tigers will eat pig, cattle and deer. They can eat as much as 40 pounds of meat at one time! After such a big meal a tiger will not eat again for several days. White Tigers have 30 large teeth ranging from 2.5 to 3 inches. 

Caring for Young:

• Tigers are generally solitary animals, except when caring for their young. Tigers keep their young with them for 2 or 3 years until the young tigers can fend for themselves. 

Fascinating facts about white tiger:

- The White Tiger is a good swimmer, but a very poor climber. 
- They may be slow runners, but they are stealthy enough to catch any prey in their sights. 
- Because they are solitary animals, they hunt mostly at night 
- White tigers are born to - - Bengal tigers that carry an unusual gene needed for white coloring. 
- The other four sub-species of tiger are Siberian, South China, Indochinese, and Sumataran. There are only approximately 5,000 to 7,400 tigers left in the wild. 

Status:

• At the beginning of this century it is estimated that there were 100,000 wild tigers, today the number is less than 8,000. Simply put, tigers are disappearing in the wild. The main threats to tigers are poaching, habitat loss and population fragmentation.
  

White tiger in India
- The Kanha National Park
- Bandhavgarh National Park
- Ranthambore National Park
- Manas Wildlife Sanctuary
- Kaziranga National Park
- Nagarhole

Bali Tiger Extinct

Subspecies :Bali Tiger Extinct
Distribution :Bali in Indonesia
Number in the Wild ;last one shot in 1937

Number listed in Captivity :0

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Panthera
Species: Panthera tigris
Subspecies: P. t. balica

Bali tigers where once found on the Indonesian island of Bali. The Bali tiger was the smallest of the eight subspecies of tigers. There were eight (8) subspecies of Tigers in the world, out of which three sub species have already been declared extinct during this century - the Bali, Caspian and Javan tigers.

Poaching and destruction of habitat are the primary reasons for their extinction. The remaining five species are the Siberian, Chinese, Indo-Chinese, Indian, and Sumatran tigers. The last Bali tiger to be shot was believed to be a female in 1925.

The Bali tiger were extinct around the end of 1937. Fortunately, Tiger hunting was first banned in 1970, and followed subsequently by the WILDLIFE (Protection) ACT 1972. Unfortunately, this is the last known photo of the Bali tiger. 

Scientific Name: Panthera tigris balica

Range: Indonesian Island of Bali

Average Weight:

Female: 65-80 kg (143 - 176 pounds)
Male: 90-100kg (198 - 221 pounds)
Size: Tigers reach up to ten feet in length and weigh 400 to 575 pounds. 
Length:
Female: 6'-3" to 6'-6"
Male: 7'-3" to 7'-7"
Diet: All tigers are carnivorous. Tiger prey consists mostly of pigs, deer, antelope, buffalo and other large mammals, although tigers have been known to hunt smaller mammals and birds. 
Gestation Period: 100-110 Days (Averaging 103 Days)
Cub Maturity: 18 months - 2 Years
Cubs Per Litter: (Usually 2-3 cubs) Cubs are born blind and weigh 2-3 pounds.
Lifespan: Tigers live for 10-15 Years
Predators: Unknown, Man
Social Structure: Solitary (except during Mating Season)
Territory Size: Unknown. Today tigers occur in parts of India, Manchuria, China, Indonesia and Russia (Siberia). 
Conservation Status: Extinct since the late 1930's or early 1940's
Other Information: Smallest of all 8 tiger subspecies.

Javan tiger

Subspecies : Javan Tiger

Distribution : Java in Indonesia
Number in the Wild : Extinct, last seen in 1971

Number listed in Captivity : 0

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Panthera
Species: P. tigris
Subspecies: P. t. sondaica

Javan tiger reserves:

• By 1940 the Javan tiger had been pushed into remote mountain ranges and forests. At this stage some small reserves were set up, but these were not large enough and prey species were too low.
  
  Come the mid-1950s only 20-25 tigers remained on Java. Half of these were in the well-known Ujong Kulon Wildlife Reserve, but the 1960s saw all tigers eliminated from this area and also from Baluran National Park.
  
  1972 and the Javan tiger count was down to a maximum of seven in the then newly-formed Meru Betiri Forest Reserve, and perhaps five elsewhere.

The path to extinction:

• In the early 19th century Javan tigers (Panthera tigris sondaica) were so common over Java that in some areas the were considered nothing more than pests.
  
  They were driven to the verge of extinction through a rapid increase in human population leading inevitably to a severe reduction in habitat. Forests were felled then converted for agricultural use. Along with this tigers were merciless hunted and poisoned, and they experienced growing competition for prey species with wild dogs and leopards.
  
  Much of the hunting was carried out by natives, a surprising thing since they considered the tiger a reincarnation of their dead relatives.

Continued sightings of the Javan tiger:

• Occasional reports still surface of a few tigers to be found in east Java where the forested areas account for almost thirty percent of the land surface. Meru Betiri National Park, the least accessible area of the island, is located here and considered the most likely area for any remaining Javan tigers.

• This park is now coming under threat from three gold mining companies after the discovery of 80,000 tons of gold deposit within the locality.Despite the continuing claims of sightings it is far more likely that, even with full protection and in reserve areas, the Javan tiger was unable to be saved. The 'tigers' are quite likely to be leopards seen from a distance.
  
  

• At the present time the World Conservation Monitoring Centre lists this subspecies as having an 'outstanding query over status' rather than extinct, and some agencies are carrying out experiments using infrared activated remote cameras in an effort to photograph any tigers. Authorities are even prepared to initiate the move of several thousand natives should tiger protection require this.
  
  But until concrete evidence can be produced (expert sightings, pug marks, photographic evidence, attacks on people and animals), the Javan tiger must be considered yet another subspecies which is probably lost to mankind
  
  

African Tiger

African Tiger:

• Although conventional wisdom has it that there never have been tigers in Africa, there is evidence from fossils that the sabre-tooth species was found in many parts of the continent until about a million years ago.

• The reason for their disappearance is unclear, but palaeontologists say it was probably caused by dramatic climatic changes opening up the savannahs.
  

Sumatran Tiger

Subspecies : Sumatran Tiger

Distribution : Sumatra in Indonesia
Number in the Wild : 400 - 500

Number listed in Captivity : 195 in 64 collections

Sumatran Tiger:

• Indonesia's last sub-species of tiger - the Sumatran - is doomed unless the trade in its body parts is stopped and its habitats saved, campaigners warn. One estimate suggests there may be only 400-500 of the tigers left in the wild.

• The tiger is one of the most feared animals in the world. That is probably because it is the largest of the felids, although the Sumatran tiger is smaller than the Indian tiger.

• The tiger is known for its stripes, and the Sumatran tiger has stripes that are a little closer to each other than some other subspecies of tiger. Tigers have very muscular front legs (forepaws) with large paws armed with large, sharp claws

Range & Habitat:

• The Sumatran Tiger is found only in the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
  They inhabit only the small island of Sumatra, where there small size makes it easy for them to move in the dense tropical jungle. Unlike the cheetah and lion, the tiger does not live in open areas.

• They rely on ambushing their prey , which requires something to hide them. As a result, they prefer to live in moderate to dense cover.

Diet:

• Tigers eat mostly sambar, chital, Red deer, Swamp deer, Rusa deer, and Wild pigs. Occasionally, however, they will kill a rhino or elephant calf. About one in ten or twenty attempts to catch prey is successful. Unlike the cheetah, the large tiger cannot outrun most of its prey. Instead, it relies on the element of surprise by hiding in the tall grass and ambushing it prey.
  

Reproduction & Offspring:

• After a gestation period of about 103 days, the mother tiger gives birth to 2-4 cubs. The cubs weight about 2.2 pounds each, are totally blind, and completely helpless. The mother raises them alone, since the male tiger does not stay with any one of his several mates. The mother hunts and periodically returns to her den to feed her cubs. Later, the cubs will join her on the hunt and will learn the art from their mother.
  
  Life span: 15 to 20 years.
  

Conservation status: 

• The tiger is an endangered species.* Of the eight tiger subspecies that once existed, only five remain (Bali, Javan and Caspian tigers have become extinct in the last 40 years). The primary reason for the decimation of wild tiger populations is human overpopulation and other activities that result in the destruction and fragmentation of habitat.

• Increasingly, the demand for tiger bones and other body parts used in traditional Asian medicines is contributing to the tiger’s decline. All five remaining tiger subspecies are endangered. It is estimated that only 6,000-8,000 tigers exist in the wild (300-400 Sumatran tigers). The future existence of tigers in the wild is in jeopardy.
  
  Woodland Park Zoo participates in the Species Survival Plan (SSP) for Sumatran tigers across North America. This plan tracks each animal's genetic diversity. It is our hope that our pair will breed and produce offspring

Not a subspecies, but a separate species?

• Sumatran tigers are distinctive for being the only subspecies to live in isolation on a large island -- Sumatra, Indonesia. They have been isolated from their cousins on mainland Asia for something like 10-12,000 years; this happened after a rise in sea level. 
  
  DNA sequencing tests involving 34 captive tigers, 10 which were Sumatrans, have revealed this isolated subspecies now has unique genetic markers. 
  
  
  
  
  

South Chinese or Amoy Tiger

South Chinese or Amoy Tiger

Subspecies : South Chinese or Amoy Tiger
Distribution : China
Number in the Wild : Extinct in the wild
Number listed in Captivity : 47 in 20 Chinese collections

South China Tiger:

• 
  At the other end of the spectrum from the Bengal tiger in terms of long-term viability lies the South China tiger (technical name Panthera tigris amoyensis). This subspecies finds itself on the very brink of extinction. There have only been a few anecdotal reports of sightings in the wild over the last ten years. Only very little secondary evidence-pug marks, feces, remnants from a kill, etc.- have been reliably reported during this period.
  
  

Range & Habitat:

• China is unique among tiger range countries because four of the surviving tiger subspecies at one time lived within its borders.
  

• The Siberian tiger in the far northeast bordering Russia and North Korea; the South China tiger (which is considered the evolutionary antecedent of all tigers) in the central parts of China; and the Indochinese and Bengal tigers in the far south bordering Vietnam, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Assam (India). The tiger is a favorite subject of Chinese artists, depicted as fierce and powerful.
  
  

Diet:

• South China tigers hunt primarily between dusk and dawn, and they attack using the same method as do the lions. They stalk, chase, and attack, bringing down and killing the prey with usually a bite to the nape of the neck or the throat. The bite to the throat allows the tiger the ability to suffocate the prey bringing death relatively quickly and painlessly.

• Smaller animals are often killed with the bite to the nape of the neck allowing the tiger to to fracture the vertebrae and compress the spinal chord of its victim. Once killed, the tiger either drags or carries its meal into cover. The tiger’s enormous strength allows it to drag an animal that would require 13 adult men to move. Tigers consume anywhere from 35 - 90 pounds of meat at one sitting, beginning at the rump of the prey.

• If undisturbed, they will return to the carcass for 3-6 days, feeding until it has completely consumed its kill. Because tigers are not the most successful of hunters, only killing 1 in every 10-20 attempts, it may be several days before it has its next meal. In the wild, cooperative hunting among tigers has also been observed where couples and families hunted like a pride of lions. This, however, is the exception not the rule.

• Unlike the other felids, man is a regular part of the tiger’s diet and has earned them greatest reputation as man-eaters. The most common prey items are various species of deer and pig, but they will also take crocodiles, young elephants and rhinos, monkeys, birds, fish, leopards, bears, and even their own kind. They have also been reported to eat carrion.
  

Reproduction & Offspring:

• Tigers can breed at any time of the year, but they typically mate in winter or spring. Tigers appear to reach maturity at about 4 years of age, although earlier maturity has been recorded. Gestation is normally 103 days. The usual number of cubs is two or three, though there may be as many as six. 
  

• 
  The cubs are blind and helpless at birth weighing about 3 pounds each. Their eyes usually open by the tenth day, although some zoo-born cubs have their eyes open as soon as they are born. During the first 8 weeks the cubs consume only their mother's milk. They are suckled for 5 or 6 months. 
  
  

• The cubs leave the den for the first time when they are 2 months old. They are wholly dependent until they are about 6 months old when they learn how to kill. They can hunt for themselves by the time they are about 18 months old and are fully independent at two years of age. Longevity in the wild is 15 years and 20 years in captivity.

Life span: 15 to 20 years in captivity.

Conservation Status:

• The South China Tiger is the most Critically Endangered (IUCN) of all of the living tiger subspecies. Considered by many experts as the "Stem" tiger. The subspecies in which all other tigers may have evolved from! Wild populations are less then 30 animals.

• In addition to wild populations, about 50 individuals live in zoos, all located with-in China. Unfortunitly all of these animals were decentants of only six "Founder Animals". As a result, very limited genetic diversity exists for a captive breading program. 
  

Facts about South China Tiger:
- Also known as the Amoy Tiger.
- Also known as the Chinese Tiger.
- Most endangered of the tiger subspecies.
- Considered to be the evolutionary ancestor of all tiger.
- The only zoo's that have this tiger are in China.

Siberian Tiger

Siberian Tiger:

Subspecies : Siberian Tiger

Distribution : Siberia in Russia, north east China and maybe North Korea.

Number in the Wild : Less than 250

Number listed in Captivity : 52 in 208 collections

Siberian Tiger:
Siberian or Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) is the largest tiger with the lightest coloured coat. Its winter coat is shaggy, dense, paler than its summer coat. This is how it survives temperatures as low as -33 degrees C. Its stripes are brown rather than black. Its muzzle is broader and males have a very well developed ruff around their necks, almost like a mane.

Range/Habitat: 
Range: The Siberian tiger can be found in uninhabited mountain forests of the Amur Basin to Siberia, and live primarily in coniferous, scrub oak, and birch woodlands of eastern Russia, with a few tigers found in northeastern China and northern North Korea. 

Habitat:

• Tigers can live in a variety of habitats. They do need adequate cover to be able to ambush or stalk their prey, and are therefore usually found in forested areas. 

Diet:

• Tigers usually stalk their prey alone and at night. The maximum kill range for a tiger is 80 feet. To make a kill, the tiger leaps on the animal, biting its neck. It then takes the slain animal to some hidden spot.

• If it is a large animal, the tiger feeds on it for many days. During this time, the tiger does not kill again. Tigers prey on deer, moose, rabbits, birds, fish, bear, elk, lynx, hares, pigs, cattle, goats, and some smaller animals. The main food of tigers are buffalos, antelopes, and rodents. 
  
  

Reproduction & Offspring:

• Young tigers or cubs are born from 100 to 112 days after parents have mated. Usually tiger cubs are born between February and May after a gestational period of three and a half months. The cubs weigh under three pounds at birth and are striped.

• The cubs' eyes open in 15 to 16 days. a litter consists of 1 to 4 cubs, occasionally up to 6, but only 2 to 3 will survive. The mother is responsible for defending her cubs, while the father hunts for food.

• Tiger cubs are weaned at 4 to 6 months, but depend on their mother for food and protection for another 2 years; the new males entering a female tiger's territory may kill her her cubs. Cubs learn how to kill at 16 months, and they are on their own at 2 to 3 years. The white ear spots help the mother tigers and cubs to keep track of each other in dim forests at night. 

Life span: 10 to 15 years in the wild.

Facts about Siberian Tiger:

- Siberian tigers are the heaviest subspecies at 600 to 700 pounds with the males heavier than the females. 
- Most tigers have an orange coat, except for the white tiger.
- Tiger stripes serve as camouflage to hide them from their prey. 
- A Siberian tiger's tail is three to four feet long. 


Siberian Tiger in India:

- Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh
- Corbett National Park, Uttaranchal
- Kanha National Park, Madhya Pradesh
- Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan
- Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary, Rajasthan
- Sunderbans National Park, West Bengal
- Bandipur & Nagarhole National Park, Karnataka
- Dudhwa National Park, Uttar Pradesh
- Manas Tiger Reserve, Assam

Indo-Chinese or Corbett's Tiger

Indo-Chinese or Corbett's Tiger:

Subspecies : Indo-Chinese or Corbett's Tiger

Distribution : Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanamar, Malaysia
Number in the Wild : 800 - 1400

Number listed in Captivity : 17 in 4 collections

Indo-Chinese Tiger:

• Indochinese tiger (Panthera tigris corbetti) is more commonly known as the Corbetts tiger, or Malayan tiger. It was recognised as a separate subspecies in 1968 when Mazak described a tiger from the vicinity of the Central Vietnam coastal town of Nha Trang.

• These tigers were found to be living across Indochina, eastern Burma and Malaysia. The Indochinese tiger is smaller, darker in coloration, and has less bold stripes than the Bengal tiger. They have a length of 101-112 in (222 - 246.4 cm) for the males and 91-100 in (200.2 - 220 cm) for the females, from nose to tail tip.

• They weight from 330-430 lb (150 - 195 kg) for the males and 221-287 lb (101 - 130 kg) for the females. There are between 1000 and 1700 of these tigers left in the wild.

Distribution:

They are presently located across southern China, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and eastern Myanmar (Burma). Most of their habitat is made up of remote forests with hilly or mountainous terrain.

Habitat:

Indochinese tigers live in remote forests in hilly to mountainous terrain, much of which lies along the borders between countries. Access to these areas is often restricted, and biologists have only recently been granted limited permits for field surveys. As a result, relatively little is know about the status of these tigers in the wild.

Diet:

Their main prey species are large animals such as deer, buffalo and wild pigs, but they will also hunt fish, monkeys, birds, reptiles and sometimes even baby elephants. Occasionally, tigers kill leopards, bears and other tigers.

Reproduction & Offspring:

• Indochinese tigers mate throughout the year, but most frequently between the end of November to early April. After a gestation of 103 days a litter of up to 7 cubs, although averaging 3, is born. Cubs will leave their mothers as young as 18 months old, or as old as 28 months old.

• During the first year, mortality can be as high as 35%, and of that 73% of the time it is the entire litter that is lost. The main causes of infant mortality are fire, floods, and infanticide, with the latter being the leading cause. Females tend to reproduce around 3 ½ years and males just under 5 years. In captivity, females have produced through age 14.
  

Life span: 15 to 26 years

Conservation status:

• Indochinese tigers are on CITES: Appendix I and are listed as Endangered by the IUCN. They are illegally poached for their fur and other body parts, and suffer from habitat loss. The Indochinese tiger (P.t.amoyensis) is under extreme threat of extinction.
  

Genetic diversity in Corbetts tiger:

• Inbreeding can result in lowered sperm counts and infertility. Inbred animals also present with medical problems like crossed-eyes, sway backs and cleft palate. The intention of tiger studbooks is to chart the history and breeding of all captive animals so as to maintain a genetic balance. 
  
  Plans for increasing genetic diversity include the capture of further wild tigers for breeding purposes. 
  
  With the advent of the Indochinese Tiger Masterplan zoos in Malaysia have already developed a relatively large and successful captive management program. 
  
  
  

Indian or Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger:

The Bengal tiger is the most common tiger that exists today, and makes up about eighty percent of all tigers.

Subspecies : Indian or Bengal Tiger
Distribution : India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan.
Number in the Wild : 3000 - 5300
Number listed in Captivity : 181 in 31 collections

Tigers live a very solitary life and are extremely territorial. They prefer to live in the depths of the forest, but will also range and hunt in the open areas, grasslands and fields.

They stalk a prey animal and will ambush it, taking a great variety of prey for food.

Male tigers are a great deal larger then their female counterparts and have a much larger ranging area.

Habitats and Sizes :

Tigers are the weightiest of the cats which are in the wild. Large Siberian males can reach a whopping 9 feet in length and weigh well over 600 pounds.

The heaviest Indian Tiger found weighed in at about 857 pounds.

The females, being much smaller, weight about 200-300 pounds.

Tigers have reddish brown fur with a very distinctive stripe that is brown to deep black. Most tigers have more than one hundred stipes on them and each animal has its own pattern, much like a human fingerprint is unique to its owner.

Scientists think the stripes were for camouflage to help the tiger hunt.

Identical:

It is hard to use this to identify the individual tigers as no one seems to be able to record the stripe patterns accurately due to the need to be close for an extended period of time. Imagine that.

The stripes are not just on the fur, but on the skin of the tiger. If a tiger were completely shaved, his skin would have all the stripes still on it.

Adult tigers are territorial and fiercely defensive. The size of a tigers home range mainly depends on prey abundance and in case of male tigers on access to females.

A tigress may have a territory of about twenty five miles, with the males territory being a great deal larger.

Sometimes the territories will overlap and although they are in fact very territorial, it seems that females will tolerate each others incursioins into their territory, while the males do not. They have amazing disputes which can end in the death of one of the males.

To identify his territory the male sprays the trees with his urine, scenting them to warn off other tigers, and sometimes to bring in females who are receptive to mating.
Male tigers will mingle with females in their own territory and even sometimes share their prey, even with females with cubs.

Females:

Females are very often reluctant to let males near their cubs, but in some cases, the females will permit the male near them, and he will allow the cubs to eat.

A female can mate only a few days during her season, and the tigers will mate a lot during that time span. They will then carry the cubs for about 100 days, before giving birth to 3 or 4 little ones, which weigh only about two pounds when they are born.

The female tigers raise the young alone, and are fiercely protective of them because wandering males will kill cubs occasionally to bring the female back into season to mate.

At about 8 weeks old the little tigers will leave the den for the first time, and watch the mother hunt.

Independent:

They are not independent of mother tiger until they are about 18 months old.

Tigers are found in a variety of habitats. Compared to other cats such as the lion tigers like more dense thick cover to hide in.

Tigers are very strong swimmers and may follow and take prey in the water as well as on land.

In the wild, tigers mostly feed on larger and medium sized prey, but if game is scarce they will take smaller prey and more of it, in order to feed themselves and their offspring.

Caspian Tiger

Subspecies : Caspian Tiger

Distribution : Caspain Sea region of the former USSR,

Iran and Afganistan

Number in the Wild : Extinct, last one shot in 1959

Number listed in Captivity:0

Scientific :

Phylum Chordata 

Class Mammalia 
Order Carnivora
Family Felidae
Authority (Illiger, 1815)
 
English Name Caspian Tiger, Hyrcanian Tiger, Turan Tiger
Danish Name Kaspisk Tiger
Dutch Name Kaspische Tijger
French Name Tigre de la Caspienne
German Name Kaspische Tiger
Spanish Name Tigre del Caspio

Swedish Name Kaspiska Tigern

Characteristics:

• The Caspian tiger is also known as the Persian tiger and was known to be a beautiful animal, thought it is thought to have become extinct by the late 1950s. There have been several supposed sightings of the tiger since then, but nothing has been proved, which means that the species is truly extinct or just not available in large enough numbers to be spotted.
  

• The third largest tiger in the world, the Caspian tiger was quite long and stocky and also had unusually large paws compared to other species of tigers. The species had very short ears, furry cheeks, and long hair all over the body surface. The coloring of the Caspian tiger was very much like the Bengal tiger.

• There is a specimen available for view at the British Museum that shows that the cats were yellowish gold on the back and the flanks with the sides of the body lighter with stripes that varied in color. Male Caspian tigers were very large weighing in at 169-240 kilograms while the females weighed in at a more modest 85-135 kilograms.
  
  

Range & Habitat:

• The Caspian tiger was known to inhabit Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Caucasus, Turkey, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The species seemed to be able to adapt well to different climates and areas, as long as there were available food sources.

• While the species was known to be in all of these areas they were solitary animals and only socialized with one another during mating season and the Caspian tiger lived for ten to fifteen years.

• 
  It is thought that the Caspian tiger would breed during any time of the year but it was most common in the winter or spring. The mating period of the species lasted 20 to 30 days and if the female did not become pregnant this time she would go into heat again during the same year. When a Caspian Tiger became pregnant she would remain so for about 100 days and then she would give birth to two or three cubs.

• The cubs were born blind and their eyes did not open for ten days. The tigress was responsible for feeding her cubs for the first eight weeks with her milk and wouldn’t leave the den for at least two weeks, and when they did so it was under the watchful eye of their mother.

• The cubs would start to hunt on their own by 11 weeks, but up until this point the mother was responsible for feeding herself and the cubs, which was a lot of work because the female raised the cubs on her own. Caspian Tigers gave birth every three to four years.
  
  

Food:

• The Caspian tiger is known to have followed the migratory herds of their preferred prey animals, such as the boar. In recognition of this, the Kazakh people referred to this tiger as the “road” or “travelling leopard”.

Historic range for the Caspian tiger:

• This tiger once ranged throughout the humid forests, mangroves and grasslands of Afghanistan, Turkey, Mongolia, Iran, Northern Iraq, Azerbaizhan, Turkmenistan (Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva, Termez, Kunya-Urgench, Merv), Uzbekistan and the Central Asiatic areas of Russia. In these isolated regions ungulates were numerous.

• There have been no attempts to preserve the Caspian tiger as fare as I know. Captive breeding was maybe an option, because there is evidence that a Caspian tiger was kept in Berlin Zoo (Germany) see the picture shown above this page. Other evidence of captive Caspian tigers is that the Afghani Prince, Ayoub Khan, has had a Caspian tiger cub.

• This cub was given to him as a gift from the Persian Ghajar Prince, Gheisar Massoud, grandson of Nasser-edin Shah. This cub can be seen on a photograph that was taken at Prince Ayoub Khan’s residence in Tehran, Iran. He was later crowned King of Afghanistan. But sadly enough no conservation attempts have been made in captivity. There are no Caspian tigers left in captivity (Nowell 2003).

Museum Specimens:

• There are some skins from the Caspian tiger in museums around the world, and a limited number of photographs showing live and dead Caspian tigers are available. Specimens can be found in the British Museum, Nature & Wildlife Museum of Iran, Siberian Zoological Museum, and the Medical College in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Relatives:

• The Bali tiger was the first subspecies of the tiger to become extinct. Unfortunately, since then, further two subspecies, namely the Caspian Tiger and the Javan Tiger, have become extinct.

• The five remaining tiger subspecies are the Bengal tiger Panthera tigris tigris (Linnaeus, 1758), Siberian (Amur) tiger Panthera tigris altaica (Temminck, 1844), Sumatran tiger Panthera tigris sumatrae Pocock, 1829, Indo-Chinese tiger Panthera tigris corbetti Mazak, 1968, and the South China tiger Panthera tigris amoyensis (Hilzheimer, 1905). These 5 subspecies are critically endangered en may follow them soon, if nothing more will be done to protect them!

References:

• Can, O.E. 2004. Status, Conservation and Management of Large Carnivores in Turkey. Council of Europe. 29 pages. Strasbourg, France.
  Heptner, V.H. and Sludskii, A.A. 1972. [Mammals of the Soviet Union. Vol III: Carnivores (Feloidea).] Vyssha Shkola, Moscow (in Russian). Engl. transl. edited by R.S. Hoffmann, Smithsonian Inst. and the Natl. Science Fndn., Washington DC, 1992.
  
  Kock, D. 1990. Historical record of a tiger, Panthera tigris (Linnaeus, 1758) in Iraq. Zoology in the Middle East 4: 11-15.
  
  Mazák, V. 1981. Panthera tigris. Mammal. Species 152: 1-8.
  
  Nowell, K. 2003. Panthera tigris ssp. virgata. In: IUCN 2006. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 09 December 2006.
  
  Nowell, K. and Jackson, P. (compilers and editors) 1996. Wild Cats. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland. (online version)
  
  Ognev, S.I. 1935. Mammals of the U.S.S.R. and adjacent countries. Israel Program for Scientific Translations, Jerusalem ( 1962).
  
  Üstay, A.H. 1990. Hunting in Turkey. BBA, Istanbul.
  
  Vuosalo, E. 1976. Once there was a tiger. Wildlife Mar: 126- 130 (Teheran).
  
  

Links:

5 TIGERS - The Tiger Information Center.
Tiger Territory. The Internet's most massive information and tiger photograph resource.
National Museum of Natural History - Naturalis. (Leiden, The Netherlands)
Hungarian Natural History Museum. (Budapest, Hungary)
300 Pearls - Museum highlights of natural diversity.
Green Party of Iran - News - The Caspian Tiger.
World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF).
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
CITES.

Distribution

Distribution:

Tigers used to range over much of Asia. There were eight separate sub-species. At the beginning of the l9th Century there were about 100,000 tigers in the world. Today the outlook for the Tiger is very bleak. Although no thorough census has been conducted, it is estimated the world population of tigers is less than 8,000.

STOP KILLING TIGER

The tiger's sad :

• Tigers are now an endangered species; Today there are only about 5,000 to 7,400 tigers left in the world. These tigers would soon die if people do not stop hunting them.

• It is estimated that 100 years ago, there were 50,000 to 80,000 tigers in India alone. Three types of tigers, The Bali, Javan, and Caspian tigers have become extinct (not even one of them is left in this world.) in the past 70 years.
  

There are two reasons why tigers are endangered:

1) Habitat loss:

People cut forests where tigers live, to do farming, build houses & buildings. This leads to tiger becoming homeless and foodless. Animals which the tiger eats also die when forests are cut. This leads to tigers becoming weak and ultimately they die.

2) Illegal Killing:

Tigers are killed to make rugs and coats out of their skins, and also because in many Asian cultures medicines made from tiger parts are believed to cure diseases.

Tigers and many other endangered species are killed illegally for their skins and body parts. Products made from rare wild animals such as spotted cats, tigers, rhinos, and elephants are still sold illegally.

• 
  why should we save tiger?
  
    Saving the tiger means saving mankind..
  
  Not only is tiger a beautiful animal but it is also the indicator of the forest's health. Saving the tiger means we save the forest since tiger cannot live in places where trees have vanished and in turn secure food and water for all.
  
  

• If we make sure tigers live, we have to make sure that deer, antelope and all other animals that the tiger eats (its prey base) live.

• To make sure that these herbivores live, we must make sure that all the trees, grass and other plants that these prey animals need for food are protected. In this way, the whole forest gets saved! Saving the tiger means saving its entire forest kingdom with all the other animals in it.
  

• Also forests catch and help store rainwater and protect soils. In this way we protect our rivers and recharge groundwater sources. Areas with less trees lead to floods, killing people and destroying homes. It takes away the precious soil, leaving behind a wasteland.

• The soil jams up our lakes and dams, reducing their ability to store water. By destroying the tiger's home, we not only harm tigers, but also ourselves.
  

• 
  The tiger thus becomes the symbol for the protection of all species on our earth since it is at the top of the foodchain. This is why we sometimes call the tiger, an apex predator, an indicator of our ecosystem's health
  
  

Tigers-Taxonomy

Taxonomy:

Kingdom -- Animalia

Subkingdom -- Metazoa

Phylum -- Chordata

Sub phylum -- Vertebrata

Class -- Mammalia

Sub class -- Theria

Infraclass -- Eutheria

Order -- Carnivore

Suborder -- Fissipedia

Infraorder -- Eutheria

Superfamily -- Feloridea

Family -- Felidae

Genus -- Panthera

Species -- tigris

TIGER CONSERVATION STATUS

Fish and Wildlife Service:

• The tiger is listed as an endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the IUCN Red Book and is an Appendix I species under CITES.

• From an estimated 100,000 tigers a century ago, fewer than 5,000 remain in the wild. About 3,000-4,000 Bengal tigers, 400-500 Siberian tigers, 400-500 Sumatran tigers and 1,000-1,800 Indochinese tigers remain in the wild.

•  Fewer than 20 wild South China tigers are thought to survive.
  

•  Tigers are protected by law in every country of their range, except Myanmar, however the illegal traffic in their parts continues. In 1973 Project Tiger was launched in India to create reserves to protect the Tiger.

• At first it appeared a success but 20 years later and at a cost of $40 million from the Indian Govemment and $1 million from WWF, the project seems to be failing.

• Traffic (a branch of WWF) has started new initiatives in the past two years to help stop the illegal trade.
  

WWF:

• WWF is also helping to establish protected areas in China, Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand and Vietnam. Two further charities have also begun work to help: Global Tiger Patrol and the Tiger Trust, both based in the UK.

• Captive breeding of all five surviving sub-species of tigers is also vital. All animals are registered world-wide on computer and optimum breeding potential is aimed for.
  

Tigers habitat

Tigers are the biggest cats in the world:

Sizes:

• Adult Tigers are l.8-2.8 metres long and weigh up to 272kg.

• Tigers are the largest living cats. The black stripes on the tawny coat provide effective camouflage in the tiger's forest habitat. Background colour ranges from pale in Siberia to deep fawn in Bengal. White Tigers are not a separate species or sub-species, but originated from a wild caught white Indian Tiger.
  

Tiger habitat:

• Its habits and inclination limit tiger in its choice of a habitat by its physical make up. Climate was no obstruction to its migration provided it could find shelter from the heat. Forest gives the shelter to the tiger and where there is forest there is water to quench its insistent thirst.

• Forest also makes assemblage of large herbivorous animals which the tiger must have for food, and within forest it finds ample cover for its secretive methods of hunting and its seclusive habit of life.

Habitats:

• Tigers live in a great range of habitats, essentially requiring sufficient prey populations, adequate cover to stalk or ambush, and access to water. Tigers may live in northern latitudes in snowy mountain hardwood forests, monsoon or seasonally deciduous forests, or in tropical rainforests.
  

• 
  They live in wet, humid and hot jungles as well as icy cold forests. There are five different kinds or subspecies of tiger which are still alive today. These tigers are called Siberian, Indochinese, South China, Bengal, and Sumatran. Their Latin name is Panthera tigris.
  

Tigers Species:

• Tigers are an endangered species; only about 4,870 to 7,300 tigers are left in the wild. Three tiger subspecies, which are now extinct are: the Bali, Javan, and Caspian tigers.
  They have become so over the last 70 years.
  
  

• People admire the tiger for its strength and beauty, but they fear it because they are known to kill human beings, yet almost all-wild tigers avoid people.

Wild About Tiger:

• Probably only 3 or 4 out of every 1000 tigers eat people and most of these are sick or wounded animals, that can no longer hunt large prey. Wild tigers are found mostly in India. Until the 1800’s many lived throughout most of the southern half of the continent.

Living Tiger:

• Tigers still live in some of these areas, but only a few are left. People have greatly reduced their number by hunting them and by clearing the forest in which they lived. Today wild life experts consider the tiger an endangered species.
  

• 
  Tigers can live in almost any climate. They need only shade, water and prey. They are found in the hot rain forest of Malaya, the dark thorny woods of India, and the cold, snowy, spruce forest of Manchuria.They also live in oak woods, tall grassland, swamps, and marshes. Tiger prefers to be in shadows and seldom go into open country as Lions do.