Tiger

Ecology

Color and Appearance

The upper part of the animal ranges from red orange to ochre, and the under parts are white in color. The body has a series of black striations of black to dark grey color. The characteristic stripe patterns differ from one individual to another and from one side of the cat's body to the other. In fact, there are no tigers with identical markings. Males exhibit a characteristic ruff, lengthened hairs around the neck, which is especially marked in the Sumatran tiger. Some Bengal tigers are cream or white in color instead of orange, due to a recessive gene for this coloration. Those with the gene are often referred to as "white" tigers and have a pink nose and blue eyes.

Size

Depending on the subspecies and gender, body length (including the tail) is 55-118 inches. Tail length is 24-37 inches.

Weight

Males of the largest subspecies, the Amur (Siberian) tiger, may weigh up to 660 pounds, while males of the smallest subspecies, the Sumatran tiger, upper range is at around 310 pounds. Within each subspecies, males are heavier than females.

Diet

Tigers mainly eat large mammals such as pigs, deer, antelope, buffalo and gaur. Their preferred and essential food is ungulates – hoofed animals such as deer and wild pigs. Smaller mammals and birds are occasional prey. Tigers have also been known to eat crocodiles, fish, birds, reptiles and even other predators like leopards and bears.

The life of a tiger

Born to be wild

Tigers are mostly solitary, apart from mother-offspring associations. However, individuals living close to one another may display sociable behavior and at times, adults may even share a kill.

© Chris Hails / WWF-Canon

Tigers have dens in caves, tree hollows and dense vegetation. They are mostly nocturnal but in the northern part of its range, the Amur subspecies may also be active during the day in the winter.

Individual tigers have a large territory. Where prey is abundant, such as in Chitwan National Park in Nepal, territories range from 2,400 acres to 4,900 acres for females and 7,400 acres to 17,300 acres for males. In Russia, where the density of prey is much lower, territories vary in size from 49,400 acres to 98,800 acres for females and 197,700 acres to 247,000 acres for males.

Unless they die, tigers are never replaced on their range.

Although individuals do not patrol their territories, the range is visited over a period of days or weeks and it is marked with urine and feces.

Breeding

Although tigers can mate at any time, breeding is more frequent from November to April. On average, tigers give birth to 2-3 cubs every 2-2.5 years, and sometimes every 3-4 years. If all the cubs die, a second litter may be produced within 5 months. Gestation is usually 104-106 days and births occur in a cave, a rocky crevice, or in dense vegetation.

Life cycle

Tigers generally gain independence at 2 years of age and attain sexual maturity at 3-4 years for females and at 4-5 years for males. Juvenile mortality is high however; about half of all cubs do not survive more than 2 years. Tigers have been known to reach the age of 26 years in the wild.