Grr...
Tigers. You love them. You respect them. You Fear them. Now it's time you get to know them... Without further ado, here are fifty fun facts about tigers.
Roar!
- Tigers can reach up to 11ft (3.3m) in length
- They are the heaviest cats in the wild, weighing up to 660lbs (300kg)
- A tigers canines (sharp teeth) can reach up to 4 inches long
- Tigers have a lifespan of 10-15 yrs in the wild and up to 20 yrs in captivity
- A very adaptable predator, the tiger is native to various habitats, from the Siberian forests to open grasslands and even tropical swamps
- The tiger is a solitary hunter
Aww...
- Three of the nine subspecies of the modern tiger are now extinct
- The remaining six are all classified as endangered species
- The name 'tiger' is taken from the Greek word tigris, a derivative of the Persian word for arrow, referring to the animals great speed
- Though tigers rarely form groups, when they do the proper name is a 'streak' of tigers
- The current range of the tiger is only 7% of what it used to be
- Of all the big cats, only the tiger and jaguar are strong swimmers
- They can swim up to 4 miles, and have been observed dragging their prey across lakes
Hello.
- Compared to lions, tigers tend to prefer areas of denser vegetation, better suiting their camouflage and solo hunting style
- The oldest known tiger like cat is the Panthera palaeosinesis which lived about 2 million years ago
- The oldest fossils of true tigers are dated at about 1.6-1.8 million years old
Thirsty?
- Most tigers have over 100 stripes
- Like a human's fingerprints, the patterns on tigers are unique to each animal and can be used to identify individuals
- The striped pattern is also found on the skin of a tiger, thus if one were to be shaved it's unique camouflage pattern would remain
- Like other big cats, tigers have a white spot on the back of their ears called an ocelli
- A female tiger is called a tigress
Not cool...
- Tigresses are smaller than their male counterparts
- White tigers have blue eyes (others have yellow)
- All tigers have round pupils
- A tiger's nightvision is 6 times stronger than those of a human
- The South China Tiger is one of the top ten most endangered creatures in the world with not a single one being sighted between 1983 and 2007
- With only 56 known South China Tigers in captivity (all derived from only a group of six original tigers) the genetic diversity required to maintain the subspecies may no longer exist, making it doomed to extinction
- The three extinct subspecies of tigers were all wiped out in the 20th century
NOT albino.
- A white tiger will only be produced when both parents carry the rare recessive gene
- The gene for white tigers has been calculated to occur in only one out of every 10,000 births
- White tigers are not albinos, as they have pigmentation on their dark stripes, blue eyes and pink noses
- All white tigers are at least part Bengal
Strawberry fields forever...
- The golden tabby or strawberry tiger is the only other verified color variation amongst tigers (also only found in tigers which are at least part Bengal)
- Golden tabby tigers have much thicker fur and very faint orange stripes
- Golden tabby tigers can carry the recessive gene for white tigers and when two such tigers are mated can produce a white stripeless cub
You're sitting in my spot.
- A male tiger's territory can be five times greater than it's female counterparts
- Though tigers tend to avoid one another, both male and female tigers have been observed sharing their kills in the wild
- Territory disputes between male tigers are often settled by displays of intimidation rather than physical aggression
- A subordinate tiger will give up territory to a dominant tiger by rolling on to it's back, displaying it's belly in a submissive posture
- A male will sometimes tolerate a subordinate within it's range so long as it does not live in too close quarters
Yum.
- Forms of marking territory include spraying urine and anal secretions and marking trails with scat (feces)
- Though tigers preferred prey includes wild boar, deer and buffalo, they have been observed preying on leopards, pythons, bears and crocodiles as well
- Many old or injured tigers, as well as healthy tigers in some regions have been known to be man-eaters
- Tigers will also eat vegetation for dietary fiber, with the fruit of the Slow Match Tree being a favorite
- Like most cats, the tiger is an ambush predator
- Tigers kill by locking their jaws around the neck of their prey until it dies of strangulation
- Tigers can reach speeds of up to 35-40 mph (49-65 kmph)
- A tiger can leap a distance of up to 10m
- A tiger's litter usually consists of 3-4 cubs
- The captive population of tigers in the US rivals the population of wild tigers in the entire world.
Sources: 1