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The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus Panthera native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail, and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes.
- Bengal Tiger
The Bengal tiger is a population of the Panthera tigris...
- Siberian Tiger
The Siberian tiger or Amur tiger is a population of the...
- Tiger (Disambiguation)
Other animals. Smilodon, commonly known as the saber-tooth...
- Sumatran Tiger
The Sumatran tiger is a population of Panthera tigris...
- Bengal Tiger
- Overview
- Natural history
Tigers can live in a range of environments, including the Siberian taiga, swamps, grasslands, and rainforests. They can be found anywhere from the Russian Far East to parts of North Korea, China, India, and Southwest Asia to the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
What do tigers eat?
Tigers eat large prey animals like deer and wild pigs, though they make exceptions for some small animals, including porcupines. After consuming what they can of their prey, tigers hide animal carcasses from scavengers so they can return to them later.
How long do tigers live?
The average lifespan of a tiger in the wild is about 11 years. In captivity their lifespan is about 20 to 25 years.
How many types of tigers are there?
The tiger has adapted to a great variety of environments, from the Siberian taiga, where nights can be as cold as −40 °C (−40 °F), to the mangrove swamps of the Sundarbans, where the temperatures reach more than 40 °C (104 °F). Tigers haunt the ruins of buildings such as courts and temples and are at home in habitats ranging from dry grassland to rainforest. Grasslands, mixed grassland-forests, and deciduous rather than densely canopied forests support maximum population densities, as these habitats maintain the highest number of prey species. Having evolved in the temperate and subtropical forests of eastern Asia, the tiger is less tolerant of heat than other large cats, which may explain why it is an adept swimmer that appears to enjoy bathing. Under stress it may climb trees.
The tiger usually hunts by night and preys on a variety of animals, but it prefers fairly large prey such as deer (sambar, chital, and swamp deer) and wild pigs. A special liking for porcupines, despite the danger of injury from their quills, is an exception. Healthy large mammals are generally avoided, although there have been recorded instances of the tiger’s having attacked elephants and adult water buffalo. Cattle are occasionally taken from human habitations, and some tigers can thrive on domestic livestock. After making a kill and consuming what it can, it makes a deliberate attempt to hide the carcass from vultures and other scavengers so that another meal can be obtained. Tigers are not averse to commandeering a kill from other tigers or leopards, and they sometimes eat carrion. Skill in killing and obtaining prey is only partly instinctive, maternal training being essential for proficiency. For this reason, tigers raised in captivity would not fare well if released into the wild. As the top predator throughout its range, the tiger plays a major role in controlling not only its prey population but that of other predators such as the leopard, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), and clouded leopard. No trait of the tiger has fascinated humans more than man eating. A number of reasons account for this—disability caused by age or injury, paucity of prey, acquisition of the habit from the mother, or defense of cubs or kill. With the reduction in the number of tigers, the occurrence of man-eating tigers has become rare except in the Sundarbans, the northeast Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, and neighbouring Nepal in and around Royal Chitwan National Park.
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As solitary animals, tigers (especially males) establish and maintain their own territories, the size and nature of which vary with the number and distribution of prey, the presence of other tigers in the area, the nature of the terrain, the availability of water, and individual characteristics. Spacing between individuals and maintenance of territories are achieved through vocalization, scrapings on the ground, claw marking of trees, fecal deposits, scent deposited by the rubbing of facial glands, and spraying of urine mixed with scent secreted from the anal glands. The solitary nature of the species also helps minimize territorial conflict. Nonetheless, confrontations do occur, sometimes resulting in injury and even death.
The readiness of a tigress to mate is announced through vocalization and scent production. There is no fixed breeding season, though the preponderance of mating appears to occur in winter, with striped cubs being born after a gestation period of more than three months. The normal litter size is two to four, though up to seven cubs have been recorded. They are born blind, and, even when their eyes open, opacity prevents clear vision for six to eight weeks. There is thus a long period of weaning, tutelage, and training during which cub mortality is high, especially if food is scarce. During this time the offspring must endure long periods of absence by the mother while she is away hunting. Weaker cubs get less food because of the aggressiveness of their stronger siblings as food is less frequently made available. The cubs remain with the mother until about the second year, when they are nearly adult and are able to kill prey for themselves. Male cubs grow more quickly than females and tend to leave their mother earlier. Though cub infanticide (mainly by males) is known, it is not very unusual to find a male with a tigress and cubs, even sharing a kill. Such associations, however, do not last long. The tigress does not breed again until her cubs are independent. The average life span of a tiger in the wild is about 11 years.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Tropical rainforests, evergreen forests, temperate forests, mangrove swamps, grasslands, and savannas. Map data provided by IUCN. There are two recognized subspecies of tiger*: the continental ( Panthera tigris tigris) and the Sunda ( Panthera tigris sondaica ).
Tigers are the largest of all Asian big cats, weighing in at up to 660 pounds. The smallest of tiger subspecies—the Sumatran tiger—weighs about 310 pounds at most. Within each subspecies, the males are heavier than the females.
Easily recognized by its coat of reddish-orange with dark stripes, the tiger is the largest wild cat in the world. The big cat's tail is three feet long. On average the big cat weighs 450 pounds,...
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Tigers are powerful hunters with sharp teeth, strong jaws and agile bodies. They are the largest terrestrial mammal whose diet consists entirely of meat; the largest tiger ever recorded was an Amur tiger. The tiger's closest relative is the lion. In fact, without fur, it is difficult to distinguish a tiger from a lion.
Tigers are icons of beauty, power, and the importance of conservation. Learn five surprising facts about these striped felines, including how large the cats can be, an adaptation some developed...
