The Royal Bangle Tiger

Intruduction

The tiger is the largest member of the felid(cat) family.They sport long,thick reddish coats with white bellies and white and black tails.Their had,bodies,tails and limbs have narrow black,brown or gray stripes.There were once nine subspecies of tigers:bengle,siberian,indochinese,sumatran,Malayan,Caspian,Javan and bail.of these,the last three are extinct,one is extinct in the wild,and the rest are endangerered.

Diet

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

Population

In the early 1900s, there were around 100,000 tigers throughout their range.Today an estimated total of around 3,000-4,500 exist in the wild.Below is a breakdown of tiger numbers  by subspecies.

Benglal tiger:less than 2,000

Indochinese tiger:750-1,300

Siberian tiger:Around 450

Sumatran tiger:400-500

Malayan tiger:600-800

South Chinese tiger:Extinct in the wind

Caspain tiger:Extcint

Javan tiger:Extcint

Bali tiger:Extcint

Range

Historic tiger range ran from Turkey through South and Southeast Asia to the far eastern shores of the continent.Today,they are only found in south and southeast ASIA,China and the Russian far east.

Behavior

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

Reproduction

 Mating Season:In tropical climates,mostly from around November to april;during the winter months in temperate regions.

Gestation:103 days.

Litter size:3-4 cubs

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 1/2 years.Mothers guard their young from wandering males that may kill the cubs to make the female receptive to mating.