Appearance
A distinctive feature of this representative is its characteristic white body color. This color is due to a gene mutation, and it can be found in the wild in single copies. The population of this species spread due to the crossing of a unique white tiger with a yellow female. As a result of this crossing, white tigers were born, which develop well and continue the race in zoos and nurseries. In the wild, it is a rare representative, since its color does not allow it to catch its prey unnoticed.
This representative is an extremely strong and large predator. The height can range from 2.3 to 2.5 meters in height, and the weight of an adult varies from 180 to 270 kilograms. The discrepancy in indicators is due to the difference in species depending on their habitat and lifestyle. Being a dangerous predator, the white tiger is endowed with a very developed jaw apparatus with large sharp fangs. There are a total of 30 teeth in the white tiger's mouth. The body is covered with dense and low hair. The almost completely white cover has black stripes. Eye color can be either blue or slightly greenish. It is noteworthy that among the population of white tigers there are also so-called albinos, whose body color is completely white with reddish eyes.
Kenny
Apart from his brother Willie, who was cross-eyed, all the other cubs from the same litter with Kenny were born stillborn or died immediately after birth.
After the tiger was rescued in 2000, its owner admitted that he did not kill the deformed cub at birth because his "son thought Kenny was too cute."
Kenny's distinctive features meant he had no chance of ending up with a family that wanted a rare tiger as a pet.
Nutrition
Since it is an absolutely carnivorous predator, the basis of its diet consists exclusively of meat. As prey, the white tiger prefers to hunt animals such as deer, elk, roe deer, musk deer, tapirs and wild boars. Sometimes they can eat birds, but mostly they are partridges and pheasants. Well, like most felines, the white tiger loves to eat fish.
During the hunt, he lies in ambush, waiting for an opportunity to attack. He can spend quite a lot of time like this. White tigers themselves are extremely intelligent and careful predators. They are able to wait for hours until the victim reaches a dead end in order to completely neutralize it. For small mammals, the white tiger is the most feared predator. You won't be able to run away from him, because he is certainly very fast and agile. It is capable of reaching speeds of 60 kilometers per hour, and when it overtakes the victim, it throws it to the ground and breaks its spine or bites it in the neck. Then he drags the dead carcass into his lair to tear it into pieces.
In captivity, these predators feed 6 times a week. They are given fresh meat and various processed meat products. Periodically feed rabbits and chickens. White tigers fast one day a week, as they have a dense subcutaneous fat layer.
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Photo: Afanasy Bereda, courtesy of
Behavior and lifestyle:
Tigers are almost constantly on the move. Walking around their territory, they look for prey. Tigers, like other cats, mark the boundaries of their territory with odorous marks. They also scrape the ground or, standing on their hind legs, tear off the bark from trees. Such “bullies” can sometimes be found at a height of 2–2.5 meters above the ground.
Tigers are conservative - they use the same paths for years and, if there is enough food within their territory, they never leave them.
The sizes of tigers' habitats vary. They depend on the sex and age of the animal and on how many ungulates are found in the area. Tigresses with small cubs, for example, use a much smaller territory for living and hunting than solitary animals.
The Amur tiger has enormous strength and well-developed sense organs. At the same time, he has to devote a lot of time to hunting. Tigers hunt mainly large ungulates. To catch prey, a tiger crawls towards its prey, arching its back and resting its hind paws on the ground. Only one out of ten attempts is successful. And if the throw ends in failure, the tiger will prefer not to pursue the victim, but to look for a new one. When there is little game in the forests, Amur tigers sometimes attack large livestock and dogs.
Nutrition:
The tiger's diet mainly consists of wapiti, wild boar and sika deer. The tiger's daily food intake is 9-10 kilograms of meat. For the prosperous existence of one individual, about 50-70 ungulates per year are needed.
The Amur tiger can not only hunt, but also fish - during spawning, it catches fish on the rifts of mountain rivers.
Behavior and character
White tigers are extremely dangerous and aggressive animals. They are very jealous of their territory. In order to preserve their possessions, they mark bushes, trees and rocks with urine. White tigers themselves are solitary predators, so they do not even accept their relatives on their territory. Meeting a person in the wild can mean quick death. In order to weaken the evil temper of white tigers, in captivity they undergo serious training, which is quite dangerous for humans.
"The breeder claimed that Kenny crashed into the wall."
Kenny was rescued when his breeder contacted the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and asked them to take his two tiger brothers.
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Staff describe how a "rude man" demanded £7,800 for them, claiming their ugliness would boost ticket sales. When the center refused, the breeder eventually agreed to give them up for free.
The staff were shocked by Kenny's deformities, especially his crushed muzzle, which the owner said was caused by the tiger himself.
Upon seeing Kenny for the first time, Emily McCormack said that “the gentleman we rescued him from said the tiger kept running his face into the wall. But it was clear that the matter was completely different.”
Workers, who named the tiger after singer Kenny Rogers, found the brothers and their parents in “a filthy cage filled with chicken bones and feces. It was clear that the place had not been cleaned for several weeks.”
They took Kenny, Willie, Mom Loretta and Dad Conway, saving them all from tragic death.
Reproduction
The mating season lasts from December to January. There is only one male per female. And if a competitor appears, heated fights take place between the males to decide who will be the female’s companion. The female can be fertilized for only a few days during the year. The gestation period lasts from 97 to 112 days, and white tiger cubs are born only in March. The female gives birth to no more than four cubs, which weigh from 1.3 kilograms. They are born completely blind. They become sighted at the age of a week. At first they feed exclusively on mother's milk. During this period, the female limits the males, since an adult male can attack the cubs. Already at the age of 2 months, little tiger cubs learn to move according to their mother’s example. They become full-fledged and ready for independent life only at the age of 1.5 years. But many tiger cubs spend with their mother until they are three years old. Having separated from the female, the small white tiger cubs are in the territory close to her.
White Tiger: Description
If we talk about the pure white color of various representatives of the animal world, they are extremely rare in nature. White tigers also appear rarely in nature, with only one white individual per 10 thousand individuals. Over the years, reports of encounters with white tigers have appeared from different parts of the globe.
Bengal tiger - All about the tiger subspecies | Bengal tiger cat family
Appearance
A white tiger's coat color is pure white with contrasting dark stripes that form a unique pattern on the animal's body for each individual. Such an unusual coloring appeared as a result of congenital gene mutations. As a rule, the main eye color of such unusual individuals is blue, although there are individuals with green eyes. Like ordinary tigers, white tigers have a strong, flexible body, characterized by the presence of powerful muscles. It should be noted that white tigers are characterized by smaller sizes compared to tigers whose body color is traditional.
The head of a white tiger is characterized by a distinctly rounded shape, with the facial part protruding and the frontal part noticeably convex. The skull is relatively large and massive, with widely spaced cheekbones. The vibrissae of this predatory animal are up to 15 cm long and up to one and a half millimeters thick. Their color is pure white and they are arranged in 5 rows. In adult individuals, you can count up to 3 dozen large and strong teeth, while the pair of fangs are the most developed, up to 8 centimeters long.
White tigers have smaller, rounded ears. The predator's tongue has peculiar bulges, due to which the predator easily separates the meat from the bone and also washes itself. The hind limbs are armed with 4 fingers, and the front limbs are armed with 5 fingers, which are distinguished by the presence of retractable claws. An adult white tiger weighs on average up to half a ton, with a body length of about 3 meters.
Interesting to know! As a result of natural mutations, this predator is characterized by very poor health. He suffers from ailments of the excretory system, kidney disease, strabismus or poor vision. In addition, the predator may have an overly curved neck and spine, as well as allergic reactions.
In addition to white tigers with dark stripes, among such individuals there are classic albinos, whose fur is pure white, without any stripes. The body of such animals does not produce coloring pigments, so the eyes of albinos are characterized by a reddish tint, since the blood vessels passing inside the eyeballs are clearly visible.
Character and lifestyle
Living in the natural environment, these predatory animals prefer to lead a solitary lifestyle, jealously guarding their territory. They mark their territory in various ways, including physically, leaving marks on various vertical surfaces using their sharp claws.
As for females, they can share their territories with their relatives. White tigers are excellent swimmers and easily climb trees, although this makes them quite vulnerable to hunters. In fact, living in nature, white tigers have a hard time, since their color does not allow them to hide from all kinds of enemies. In this regard, white tigers quite often became inhabitants of zoos, especially since in our time they can only be seen in captivity. The white tiger occupies an area of up to 100 square kilometers, although this figure depends on factors such as habitat characteristics, the presence of other individuals, including females, and the availability of food. The area of territory occupied by females is about 5 times smaller. In one day, adult individuals travel an average of 27 kilometers, while they update their marks, indicating that the territory is occupied.
Important point! You should know that white tigers are not albino tigers, despite the peculiar coloring of their fur.
This phenomenon is not limited to Bengal tigers. Similar mutations also appear in Amur tigers, as evidenced by the relevant information. Recently, there have been practically no such cases, which is most likely due to a decrease in the number of these predators living in the vast expanses of Siberia. Currently, it is generally accepted that the population of these unique predators living on our planet is represented not only by Bengal, but also by hybrids of Bengal-Amur individuals.
How long do white tigers live?
Due to their unique coloring, it is quite difficult for white tigers to survive in the natural environment. It is difficult for them to feed themselves, and it is also difficult to hide from possible enemies, especially such as humans. Throughout her life, a female gives birth to only 10-20 cubs, and half of them do not survive and do not reach sexual maturity. Therefore, on average, white tigers live about 25 years in natural conditions.
Sexual dimorphism
Female white tigers are ready to breed at 3 or 4 years of age, with males reaching sexual maturity a year later. It is almost impossible to visually distinguish a female from a male. The arrangement of dark stripes on a white background is unique for each individual, which is used by experts to identify animals.
Where does it live?
Bengal white tigers live in the vast expanses of Northern and Central India, in Burma, Bangladesh and Nepal. For a long period of time, it was believed that white tigers represent predatory animals native to the vast expanses of Siberia, and their colors are associated with the fact that they are perfectly camouflaged in areas where there is snow. As it later became known, this is pure delusion.
What does it eat?
White tigers, being predatory animals, like ordinary tigers, feed on components of animal origin, although in the summer tigers happily eat hazelnuts, as well as various vegetation. Females, in addition to their meat diet, can snack on fish, but males do not eat fish. To catch prey, white tigers, like any other predators, approach their potential prey unnoticed, on bent paws, making slow movements. These predators are active both during the daytime and after dark. White tigers cover a distance of up to 10 meters in one jump, up to 5 meters high.
The basis of the diet of such predators is ungulates, but often they have to be content with smaller animals, such as hares, monkeys, pheasants, etc. For normal life, a white tiger needs to eat up to fifty wild animals, or even more, throughout the year.
Interesting moment! At one time, a tiger eats about 3 tens of kilograms of meat, otherwise it will not be able to get enough.
Living in captivity, tigers receive food 6 times a week, with the basis of their diet being fresh meat, as well as meat by-products of various origins. From time to time, tigers receive live food in the form of rabbits and chickens, which helps preserve the hunting instincts of these animals. One day a week is a fasting day, which allows the predator to maintain its physical shape. Tigers can go hungry for a while because they have some fat reserves.
White tiger attack
Reproduction and offspring
White tigers mate around December/January, with one female usually followed by one male. If a rival appears, then they have to win the right to fertilize the female by engaging in fights. The process of a female’s readiness for intimacy with males is quite fleeting, but the urges constantly appear after a certain period of time. The first time a female becomes pregnant is around 3 or 4 years of age, while the next pregnancy can occur only after a couple of years. The female carries her offspring for about 4 months and somewhere in March/April they are born.
As a rule, from 2 to 4 tiger cubs are born, weighing up to one and a half kilograms. Tiger cubs are not seen during the first week of life. For the first month and a half of their life, the cubs feed exclusively on their mother's milk. The female does not allow males to approach her offspring, since an adult male can kill them and simply eat them.
After 2 months of life, the cubs begin to increasingly leave the den with the tigress, but the cubs will become completely independent only after reaching one and a half years of life, while they can remain with their mother until puberty. Having become completely independent and ready to reproduce, males leave their mother in search of free territories, and females can remain close to their mother.
Natural enemies
White tigers, like ordinary tigers, have practically no enemies among predatory animals in natural conditions. If a tiger can become a victim of a buffalo, elephant or rhinoceros, it is only by accident. Therefore, the main enemy of white tigers was and is man, as well as various natural disasters.
Population and species status
At the moment, the population of these amazing predators is extremely small in the wild. There are only six thousand white tigers in the world. They are extremely rare. This decline in numbers is due to the destruction and development of their natural habitat, as well as hunting and poaching, which was widespread throughout the world. The white tiger is rightfully listed in the Red Book as an endangered species. Trapping and hunting are prohibited by law everywhere.
Their homeland is the Asian subcontinent
Although white tigers are most often seen in Siberia, they have also been found in the northeastern part of India. They were also found in China, especially often in the southeastern region of the PRC. Because their coloring is influenced by a defective recessive gene passed on from their parents, they can potentially be seen anywhere.
They live in snowy tundra, tropical forests, mangrove swamps and humid jungles with dense vegetation and abundant sources of fresh water. Although the white tiger's habitat is historically large, the population density of these predators is very low.
Population conservation
In order to increase the number of white tigers and reduce their extinction even further, a number of measures are being taken. In particular, these include:
- A complete ban on hunting. Killing a tiger can lead to imprisonment and huge fines;
- Implementation of animal tracking systems. A special tracker is hung on the animals, which helps monitor their health and possible diseases. Their location is also monitored.
- Reserves. Since most white tigers live in various reserves, it is extremely important to create the most comfortable conditions for these animals.
It is very important to monitor the health of white tigers as they are highly susceptible to many diseases. Animals become so sick because of crossbreeding. They quite often experience kidney disease, strabismus, allergies and spinal curvature.
Without implementing measures to preserve and propagate the population, humanity risks losing another unique representative of the fauna on earth.
The largest and smallest “cat” on the planet
Tigers are capable of living not only on the continent. There are representatives of this species who have chosen the nature of the island of Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula as their habitat. They differ from their relatives primarily in body size. The maximum weight that an adult can reach is 120-130 kilograms. Sumatran tigers are considered the smallest among their other relatives.
And the Amur tiger is considered the largest cat on the planet. Where does this subspecies of the cat family, which is also called Ussuri or Far Eastern, live? We'll tell you now!
How much does a tiger weigh?
Like its size, the weight of a tiger depends on its belonging to a particular subspecies. Amur males weigh 170-250 kg. Sometimes there are real giants - about 300 kg. Females weigh almost half as much - 100-167 kg.
Bengal tigers have some differences in weight even within their subspecies. For example, the average weight of males living in India is about 221 kg, and in Nepal - 235 kg. Only some individuals reach 300 kg or more. Females weigh on average 140 kg, but not more than 193.
Interesting fact : the absolute record holder among Bengal tigers and the entire species is a male weighing 388.7 kg.
Indochinese tigers are less massive. Males weigh 150-195 kg, females - 100-130 kg. As with other subspecies, there are also larger individuals.
Comparison of cat species
Malayan tigers are one of the smallest of all subspecies, along with Sumatran tigers. The weight of males is about 120 kg, and females - no more than 100. Scientists believe that these tigers are smaller than their relatives, as they are adapted to life in dense tropical forests.
The Chinese subspecies is also distinguished by its relatively small dimensions. Males weigh 127-177 kg, and females - from 100 kg to 118. It is noteworthy that these are probably the fastest tigers, as in a short distance they can accelerate to 56 km/h.
Interesting facts about the tiger:
Tiger Facts
- July 29 is celebrated as International Tiger Day.
- The destruction of tigers was associated with the use of their organs and tissues in traditional Eastern (Chinese) medicine. The best-known medical products of this type are painkillers and aphrodisiacs. Such use is now prohibited and criminalized; but illegal trade still persists.
Tigers have binocular vision
Tigers have eyes that face forward rather than having one on each side of their head. This provides binocular vision because the field of view of each eye overlaps, creating a three-dimensional image. Binocular vision allows the predator to accurately judge distances, which is extremely useful when maneuvering and tracking prey.
Tigers have more rods (responsible for visual acuity) in their eyes than cones (responsible for color perception). The increased number of rods allows the predator to detect the movement of prey in the dark, where color vision would be useless.
Tigers have a structure at the back of the eye behind the retina called the tapetum lucidum that allows them to see better at night. This mirror structure reflects light (that has not yet been absorbed by the eye) back into the eye, thereby making the image brighter. Tapetum lucidum causes the eyes to glow at night when light falls on them.
Photo: www.goodfon.com
Cats tend to have a wide horizontal line of nerve cells near the center of the eye, allowing them to have better peripheral vision. This characteristic is especially useful when hunting prey running across the plains.
Tiger eyes have large lenses and pupils that increase the amount of light transmitted. This feature helps the tiger to see perfectly in low light levels. Research shows that cats are generally able to see green, blue and possibly red, but with less intensity than we do. In general, cats only require 1/6 of the light that humans need to see.
In addition to upper and lower eyelids that protect the eye, cats and other animals such as crocodiles and alligators have a nictitating membrane on each eye. It helps keep the eye moist and removes dust from its surface.
The tiger practically does not use the sense of smell when hunting
Tigers have a small number of olfactory cells in the nose and a reduced olfactory area in the brain that identifies different odors. These big cats primarily use their sense of smell to communicate information to each other, such as personal territory boundaries and reproductive status.
Tigers, like other carnivores, have a Jacobson's organ on the roof of their mouth. It is a pouch-like structure located directly behind the front incisors. This vomeronasal organ has two small openings that, when inhaled, direct fragrant particles from the air to nerves located inside the structure. The nerves then transmit the message to the olfactory region of the brain, which identifies the smell.
Tigers often exhibit a behavior called flehmen, in which they detect scent with their upper lip and lift it toward their nose to identify odors. From the outside it seems that the tiger is silently roaring.
Photo: Dan Dennis
Many subspecies are on the verge of extinction
Photo: www.animalsworlds.com
The Wildlife Conservation Society estimates the total tiger population at less than 5,000. The following is a random estimate of the number of tigers in each country:
- India and Nepal: 2,045
- Malaysia: 500 to 600
- Myanmar (Burma): 500
- Thailand: less than 200
- China (South China subspecies): 20 to 50
- Sumatra: 400 to 500
- China (including both North China and Siberian subspecies): 50 to 100
- Siberia: from 250 to 300
- Vietnam: 200
- Laos: less than 200
- Cambodia: less than 200
- Butane: 200
- Bangladesh: 500
Physiology
This predator has a massive body elongated in length. He has excellent muscles and excellent flexibility, characteristic of all representatives of the cat family. The back of his body is less developed than the front. The animal has five toes on its front paws and four on its hind limbs. All fingers have retractable claws. The head is distinguished by a convex forehead and a rather protruding facial part, a massive large skull and widely spaced cheekbones. The ears are small and rounded.
An adult of this species should have 30 teeth
, of which two canines are up to 8 cm long. On the sides of the animal’s tongue there are tubercles covered with keratinized epithelium, which help separate the meat from the bones of the prey. The animal's skin is covered with rather dense, low hair.
Tigers and people
The relationship between people and tigers is not easy. There are quite a lot of people who want to save this species, people who are working to restore the tiger population. At the same time, predators pose a serious danger. This is especially true for some countries and certain territories.
Very rarely, tigers attack people specifically for the purpose of obtaining prey. In most cases, they confuse a person with an animal. Or the female rushes to protect her offspring.
Tiger in the Indian Sundarbans
It happens that tigers, weakened, wounded, expelled from their territory, also begin to attack people, as well as livestock, because they cannot get other food for themselves. It is known that in the Sundarbans Nature Reserve (India) there are frequent cases of tiger attacks, since the predators there are accustomed to people and are not afraid of them.
Tiger claws are up to 10 centimeters long
They are used to capture and hold prey. Each paw has four claws and one specialized claw located higher on the foot. It does not touch the ground when walking and functions similarly to the human thumb in that it is used to grasp prey and assist in climbing.
Photo: catasters.tumblr.com
A tiger's claws are retractable and are held in place by ligaments within a protective skin sheath when not in use. The ligaments are in a relaxed position when the claws are retracted. Tigers retract their claws to keep them sharp longer so they can silently sneak up on unsuspecting prey.
Tiger claws are curved, which allows the animal to easily grab and hold large prey and climb trees head first. However, the curvature of the claws, the size and weight of the tiger are a big obstacle when descending from the trees. Tigers must either crawl backwards or jump from trees, making them the least capable climbers of the big cats.
Tigers eat a variety of foods, from termites to baby elephants
An integral component of their diet is large prey such as elk, deer, wild boar, cows, horses, buffalo and goats. They may occasionally consume tapirs, elephants, rhinoceroses, bears, leopards and Asian wild dogs. Tigers consume up to 40 kg of meat at a time. It is estimated that each adult consumes about 50 deer-sized animals per year, about one per week.
Photo: Sergei Karpukhin/TASS
The process of converting meat to protein (needed for energy) is significantly less complex than converting grass to protein. Carnivores do not require large numbers of microbes living in their guts to break down indigestible plant cellulose. Therefore, tigers and other predators have small and light stomachs that do not hinder them when they quickly accelerate while chasing prey.
Tigers have the largest fangs of any big cat species
The fangs range in size from 6.4 to 7.6 centimeters in length. The fangs have numerous pressure-sensitive nerves that allow the tiger to determine the location needed to cut the neck of its prey.
The back teeth allow the predator to remove meat from prey, like a knife blade. Small incisors located at the front of the mouth (between the two upper and lower canines) help the animal tear meat and feathers from its prey. Tigers swallow large pieces of meat that are torn off whole.
All cats have primary teeth, which appear within a week or two after birth. These teeth are called baby teeth, similar to human baby teeth. Baby teeth are eventually replaced by permanent teeth. Interestingly, tigers have fewer teeth than other carnivores. They grow 30 teeth, dogs grow 42 teeth.
