The majestic tiger, or as its scientific name, Panthera tigris, indicates, is a carnivorous mammalian animal which is one of the four species that make up the subfamily of panterines, or Pantheridae, a subfamily which in turn belongs to the family of tigers. Felidae, or felines. If you want to increase your knowledge and learn much more about the Characteristics of the Tiger, do not hesitate for a moment to continue reading this wonderful article.
Tiger Characteristics
These beautiful and majestic cats live exclusively in the Asian continent and for now they are considered the largest cat in the world. Specifically, the largest subspecies that exist are the Bengal tiger and the Amur tiger, while on the other hand, the smallest subspecies of all is the Sumatran tiger.
Today there are only six subspecies of tigers, among these six the most predominant and well-known is the Bengal tiger, a subspecies that makes up more than 80% of the entire world population of these cats, a population which is distributed today between countries like India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Burma and also Nepal. It is important to highlight the unfortunate extinction of three tiger subspecies in the XNUMXth century. Within the six subspecies that still exist today, we can find:
- Panthera tigris tigris, Bengal Tiger
- Panthera tigris corbetti, or better known as the Indochinese Tiger
- Panthera tigris jacksoni, or also Malayan Tiger
- Panthera tigris altaica, Amur Tiger or Siberian Tiger
- Panthera tigris amoyensis, South China Tiger
- Panthera tigris sumatrae, Sumatran Tiger
Description of the Tiger
In the case of male tigers, they can reach an approximate length of between 2.5 and 3.9 meters from their head to the end of their tail, it should be noted that only their tail can measure even between 60 and 100 centimeters; in turn, the average weight of these felines usually ranges between 90 and 300 kilograms. On the other hand we have the females, which have a noticeably smaller size compared to the males, these females have extremely long and above all very strong teeth, teeth that can measure up to 2.93 inches.
The beautiful and characteristic black stripes that are around their entire body help them to differentiate between themselves, since each of these felines has a completely different design from the others, not to mention that these same stripes are usually used mainly for camouflage. especially when hunting for food. It is worth mentioning that these majestic animals can reach impressive speeds when hunting, speeds that range between 80 and 90 kilometers per hour.
This big cat has an incredible ability to swim and hunt its prey in the water. In turn, tigers have impressive vision, a highly developed vision which allows them to focus and see clearly during the absolute darkness of the night.
Behavior
We can start by observing the behavior of male tigers, which have proven to be extremely territorial and highly skilled hunters. The extension of their entire territory can range between 70 and 80 square kilometers, while on the female side they can barely cover only 20 square kilometers.
The males will not allow another male to enter their territory under any circumstances, they will only allow the females to enter, they could even share their own food with the new females, letting them consume it first. The method that these animals use to mark the great extension of their territory is by leaving their urine and feces at the base of the trees, this method is quite effective for them.
Food
These beautiful mammals are at the top of the food chain in their natural habitat, as a result of which, within the diet of tigers, we can find very large animals and animals that are quite difficult to hunt. Among their favorite foods we can highlight pigs, antelopes, buffalo, deer, reptiles, wild boars, birds, crocodiles, fish, and even on a few occasions these come to hunt and eat leopards and bears, generally when these are just cubs. Tigers will always prefer to hunt alone and attack their prey from the side or by surprising them from behind their back.
In cases where they hunt very large animals, the tigers cover the remains of the animal with grass to kill it completely in the following days. In just one meal, these cats can even consume up to 40 kilograms of meat, unlike tigers found in captivity or in zoos, which are normally fed just six kilograms of food throughout the day.
Reproduction of the Tigers
Tigers usually reach sexual maturity at the time of reaching three or four years of age in the case of females, on the side of males their average ranges between four or five years. The gestation of the calves of the tigers usually takes approximately between 104 and 106 days and the most normal thing is that they give birth to one or even seven cubs at the same time every two or four years.
The births of the young usually occur in a period that ranges from November to April and occur in caves, dens or places that have a large amount of vegetation. Unfortunately, half of the cubs that are born do not survive for long, this is because other male tigers could kill them, therefore the females could become pregnant again after five months.
Frequent Threats
Amazingly, the number of tigers that still exist today is approximately 3.200. This number is from the tigers that still live in their natural habitat, since there is a considerable population of tigers that are in captivity or in zoos, however, despite this, the conditions that these felines reach there will never exceed those that can choose while being totally free.
Unfortunately, the tiger is an animal that is in serious danger of extinction, almost entirely due to human beings. These majestic foods are hunted for their beautiful and characteristic skin, which is mainly used in fashion items; in turn, its bones are also normally used as natural medicine. Not to mention the illicit trade that exists around this species and the constant rampant and massive invasion and destruction of its natural habitat. Due to all these great threats to tigers, these animals are about to become completely extinct.
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