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| SCIENTIFIC
CLASSIFICATION |
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| COMMON
NAME: |
Bengal
tiger |
| KINGDOM: |
Animalia |
| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Mammalia |
| ORDER: |
Carnivora |
| FAMILY: |
Felidae |
| GENUS
SPECIES: |
Panthera
(panther, leopard) tigris (tiger) |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
Reddish
orange with narrow black, gray or brown stripes,
generally in a vertical direction. The underside
is creamy or white; a rare variant has a chalky
white coat with darker stripes and icy blue eyes. |
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| SIZE: |
|
| MALE |
To
3 m (10 ft.) |
| FEMALE |
To
2.7 m (9 ft.) |
|
| WEIGHT: |
Largest
existing member of the cat family |
| MALE |
To
225 kg (500 lb.) |
| FEMALE |
To
135 kg (300 lb.) |
|
| DIET: |
Medium
to large prey such as pigs, deer, antelopes, and
buffalo |
|
| GESTATION: |
98-110
days; 2-4 cubs born |
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| SEXUAL
MATURITY: |
|
| MALE |
4-5
years |
| FEMALE |
3-4
years |
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| LIFE
SPAN: |
Average
probably not more than 15 years in the wild; 16-18
years in controlled environments |
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| RANGE: |
Fragmented
areas of Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Bhuton, and Burma |
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| HABITAT: |
Tropical
jungle, brush, marsh lands, and tall grasslands |
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| POPULATION: |
GLOBAL |
Less
than 3,000 within natural range |
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| STATUS: |
IUCN |
No
data |
| CITES |
No
data |
| USFWS |
Endangered |
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|
| 1. |
Since
tigers hunt mostly at dusk and dawn their stripes
help them hide in the shadows of tall grasses. They
stalk and pounce because they are not able to chase
prey a long distance. |
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|
| 2. |
The
territorial male tiger usually travels alone, marking
his boundaries with urine, droppings, and scratch
marks to warn off trespassers. |
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|
| 3. |
A
tiger can consume as much as 40 kg (88 lb.) of meat
in one feeding. |
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|
| 4. |
Tigers
may drag their prey to water to eat. They are commonly
seen in the shade or wading in pools to cool off. |
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|
| 5. |
Since
white tigers have pigmented stripes and blue eyes,
they are not albinos. |
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|
| 6. |
It
is estimated that there are less than 3,000 Bengal
tigers left in the wild. |
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|
| 7. |
For
more information about tigers, explore the tiger
info book. |
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| |
|
|
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Tigers,
as with all top-of-the-food-chain predators help
balance populations by keeping prey populations
in check. When a tiger has eaten its fill, the
abandoned prey becomes food for a variety of mammals,
birds, and reptiles. Some cultures believe that
powdered tiger bones have medicinal values. Unfortunately,
tigers are in high demand to supply this market.
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|
|
| Jackson,
Peter. Endangered Species: Tigers Secaucus,
NJ: Chartwell Books, 1990. |
| |
| MacDonald,
David (ed.). Encyclopedia of Mammals: 1.
London: George Allen and Unwin, 1985. |
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|
McDougal,
Charles. The Face of the Tiger London:
Rivington Books, 1977.
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| Nowak,
Ronald (ed.). Walker's Mammals of the World,
Vol. 2. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University
Press, 1991. |
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| Schaller,
George B.The Deer and the Tiger, A Study of Wildlife
in India. Chicago: The University of Chicago
Press, 1961. |
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