THE TIGER

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We consider it a duty to always update you, dear friends and partners on the Animal Kingdom.  Today we're bringing to you THE TIGER. Please enjoy it.

The tiger is the largest member of the felid (cat) family. With unique murky stripes spread out all over its body, it has a weight of almost 360 kilograms and length of about 1.8 meters.  Their heads, bodies, tails and limbs have narrow black, brown or grey stripes. Every tiger has its own distinctive stripe.

There were once nine subspecies of tigers: Bengal, Siberian, Indochinese, South Chinese, Sumatran, Malayan, Caspian, Javan and Bali. Of these, the last three are extinct, one is extinct in the wild, and the rest are endangered.

Tigers mainly eat amber deer, wild pigs, water buffalo and antelope. They are also known to hunt sloth bears, dogs, leopards, crocodiles and pythons as well as monkeys and hares. Old and injured tigers have been known to attack humans and domestic cattle.

Tigers occupy a variety of habitats from tropical forest, evergreen forests, woodlands and mangrove swamps to grasslands, savannah and rocky country. They are mostly nocturnal (more active at night) and are ambush predators that rely on the camouflage their stripes provide. Tigers use their body weight to knock prey to the ground and kills with a bite to the neck. They are also very good swimmers and have been known to kill prey while swimming.

Tigers essentially live solitary lives, except during mating season and when females bear young. They are usually fiercely territorial and have and mark their large home ranges.

Tigers mate in tropical climates, mostly from around November to April; during the winter months in temperate regions. The pregnancy last for about103 days that is over 3 months. They give birth to about four babies known as cubs.

The cubs follow their mother out of the den at around 8 weeks and become independent at around 18 months of age. They leave their mothers at about 2 ½ years. Mothers guard their young from wandering males that may kill the cubs to make the female receptive to mating.

Tigers do not gobble their entire prey in just one night rather they eat it when they are hungry. As a result, even a single prey may take several days to get finished.

We humans are the only predators of this animal primarily due to their fur coat and various other parts of its body and have almost driven them to extinction.

Tigers are hard to track as they are expert in hiding their trails. They pull their claws in while strolling thus making themselves hard to track.

They are capable to reside in almost any weather conditions and can stretch their lifespan to about 26 years while in captivity.

The tiger’s forelimbs are shorter than the hind limbs which is an adaptation for jumping. The forelimbs and shoulders are powerful than the hind limbs.

People are often led to believe that tigers are man-eaters, which is WRONG! They are not man-eaters. Normally they avoid making contact with humans and whenever they do so, the cat will disappear in the woods.

Tigers have sharp night vision which is six times greater than that of humans. Generally however, tigers are not adept to hunt at dark.

Tigers mark their territories by excreting urine or scratching trees. Their urine has a strong smell like buttered popcorn.

COPIED

Courtesy: Aunty Mercy Chuwang

Till I come you way again, please do remember to stay out of trouble. ciao!