Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger or Royal Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) is a subspecies of tiger found primarily in the Sundarbans of Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. It is also found in the rainforests and grasslands of Bhutan, Burma, China and Nepal. Its fur is orange-brown with black stripes, although there are also white tigers.

Physical characteristics

Male Bengal tigers measure 2.7 to 3.1 m (8.86 to 10.17 ft) in length, and weigh 200-295 kg (440-650 lb), and have a maximum skull length of 329 to 378 mm (13 to 15 in). The average male Bengal tiger is approximately 2.9 m (9 1/2 ft) in length and weighs about 220 kg (490 lb).

Female Bengal tigers measure 2.4 to 2.65 m (7.87 to 8.69 ft) in length, weigh 100 to 181 kg (221 to 400 lb), and have a maximum skull length of 275 to 311 mm (11 to 12 in). The average female Bengal tiger is approximately 2.5 m (8 ft) in length and weighs about 140 kg (300 lb).Size Variation in Tiger Subspecies. Savethetigerfund.org. Cites Mazák, V. "Panthera tigris". Mammalian Species. The American Society of Mammalogists. No. 152, pp. 1-8. (8 May 1981)

Tigers have the longest canine teeth of any living felid, approximately 10.16 cm (4 in) in large individuals. Tigers are, like most big cats, solitary animals.

Distribution

Estimates in 2005 indicate an approximate worldwide population of 4,580:

India: 3,500BBC to 3,750 + 332 pure-bred Bengal tigers in captive zoos across India Indiantiger.org
Bangladesh: 300 to 440
Nepal: 150 to 220
Bhutan: 50 to 140
China: 30 to 35

Diet

In the wild, Bengal tigers are pure carnivores and hunt medium-sized and large-sized animals, such as rabbits, badgers, water buffaloes, deer, goat, wild boar and gaur. They are also known to prey on peacocks and can climb trees to hunt primates. Tigers have also been know to prey on young elephants and rhino calves; at least one such case has been documented, where the WWF is taking care of an orphaned rhino whose mother was killed by a tiger. In India, there have been several cases of a lone tiger bringing down a bull tusker (a large male elephant with big tusks). One such case is recorded by Vivek R. Sinha in his book, The Vanishing Tiger. Bengal Tigers also take other predators as prey. They attack, leopards, wolves and hyenas.

Bengal tigers prefer to hunt mostly by night. During the day, the cover of the tall "elephant grass" gives the feline excellent camouflage. Tigers kill prey by overpowering their victim and severing the spinal cord (preferred method for smaller prey), or applying a suffocation bite for large prey. A Bengal tiger will usually drag its kill to a safe place to eat. Despite their size, Bengal tigers can climb trees effectively, but they are not as adept as the smaller leopard, which hides its kills from other predators in the trees. The Bengal Tiger can consume up to about 40 pounds (18.18 kg) of meat at a time and then go without eating for days. Grassland ungulate prey of the Bengal tiger range in size from 30 to 1500 kg (65 to 3330 lb).

Threats

Habitat loss and poaching are important threats to species survival. Poachers kill tigers not only for their pelts, but also for components to make various traditional East Asian medicines. Other factors contributing to their loss are urbanization and revenge killing. Revenge killing occurs as locals such as farmers who own livestock hunt down to tigers to prevent them from preying on their cattle. Poachers also kill tigers for their bones and teeth to make medicines that are said to give you tiger's strength.

Tigers kill about 20 people a year in Bangladesh, mostly in the Sundarbans.

Habitat

The Bengal tiger is now strictly protected, and is the national animal of both Bangladesh and India. After the resounding success of the tiger conservation program in India known as Project Tiger, the population of wild tigers has increased dramatically. The tiger population of India has reached about 3,500, up from 1,200 in the 1970s. In the Sundarbans, a 2004 census found the presence of about 280 tigers on the Bangladesh side. BSS news article

Notes

http://www.ecology.info/tiger-leopard.htm

External links

National symbols of Bangladesh | Tigers