Tiger
(Panthera tigris)
Range and habitat
The tiger is now found in China, Korea, Russia and parts of India and the Himalayan region. In the past, the tiger lived throughout much of Asia. From eastern Turkey to Malaysia, Thailand and even the islands of Java and Bali. In these areas, tigers are now almost, or completely, extinct.
Tigers can live in warm, humid areas, but also in areas with extreme snowfall and temperatures as low as forty degrees below zero. They live in rain forests and grasslands, but also in mountain and tundra areas. They need nothing more than a green environment, water nearby and enough prey.
Appearance
The tiger can be identified by its reddish-orange fur with vertical, black stripes along its flanks and shoulders. Some subspecies have a somewhat lighter coat and some are almost completely white with black or dark brown stripes. The stripes vary in size, length and spacing. On some parts of the body, the tiger is white in color, such as on the underside of the limbs, the belly, the chest and in the face. Did you know that a tiger has a white spot on the back of each ear? The Siberian tiger is the largest tiger species, a male can grow up to 3.7 meters long! The Indochinese tiger on the other hand grows to 2.85 meters and the Sumatran tiger ‘only’ 2.34 meters long.
- Tigers are excellent swimmers and can cross a river of up to 8 km wide
- The largest tiger species can grow up to 3.7 meters long
- Length 1,98 โ 3,7 meters
- Weight Depending on type of tiger and sex between 91 kg (female Sumatran tiger) and 423 kg (male Siberian tiger)
- Lifespan average in the wild 8 to 10 years. Average in captivity: 16 - 18 years. Max. in the wild: 20 years. Max in captivity: 26 years
- Range China, Korea, Russia, India, Himalayan region
- Habitat Tropical forests, grasslands, monsoon forest, oak and birch forests, mangrove swamps
Reproduction
Tigers live solitary lives and only seek out a mate to mate with. Females enter their cycle every three to nine weeks, have a gestation period of about 103 days, and give birth to one to seven cubs. The cubs’ eyes open six to 14 days after birth, and the ears open nine to 11 days after birth. The little tigers are given mother’s milk and after about two months they also get some solid food. When they are five to six months old, they join their mother for hunting. They stay with their mother until they are 2.5 – 3 years old. The father has no role in caring for the young.
Behavior and way of life
Tigers are very good jumpers, sometimes making leaps of eight to ten meters! Tigers are also excellent swimmers: they can cross a river that is six to eight kilometers wide. They are also good climbers: they can retract their claws and have a lot of strength in their paws. The tiger usually has a habitat that varies from 200 to 1000 square kilometers. This depends on how much prey is present in the area. Within this area, the tiger has several burrows, often among dense vegetation, a cavity under a fallen tree or a cave. Tigers often defend their territory, but they can also peacefully share their habitat. Tigers communicate through scent markers, visual cues, and vocal sounds.
AAP and tigers
Partly due to the impressive appearance of the tiger, this animal is unfortunately used for entertainment in circuses. Which is still allowed in some countries in Europe. In 2019, ten tigers from an Italian circus were put on a horror transport heading for Russia, in cages that were far too small. One tiger didn’t even survive this.
Because of this kind of distressing and preventable situations, AAP is committed to the ban of wild animals in entertainment throughout the European Union.
