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{{Taxobox
| status = EN
| status_system = iucn3.1
| trend = down
| status_ref =<ref name="iucn">{{IUCN2008|assessors=Chundawat, R.S., Habib, B., Karanth, U., Kawanishi, K., Ahmad Khan, J., Lynam, T., Miquelle, D., Nyhus, P., Sunarto, Tilson, R. & Sonam Wang|year=2008|id=15955|title=Panthera tigris|downloaded=9 October 2008}}</ref>
| image = Tiger in Ranthambhore.jpg
| image_caption = A [[Bengal Tiger]] (''P. tigris tigris'') in India's [[Ranthambhore National Park]].
| image_width = 250px
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]]
| classis = [[Mammal]]ia
| ordo = [[Carnivora]]
| familia = [[Felidae]]
| genus = ''[[Panthera]]''
| species = '''''P. tigris'''''
| binomial = ''Panthera tigris''
| binomial_authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758)
| synonyms =
<center>'''''Felis tigris''''' <small>[[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758</small><ref name="Linn1758" /> <br />
'''''Tigris striatus''''' <small>[[Nikolai Severtzov|Severtzov]], 1858</small><br />
'''''Tigris regalis''''' <small>[[John Edward Gray|Gray]], 1867</center>
| range_map = Tiger_map.jpg
| range_map_width = 250px
| range_map_caption = Historical distribution of tigers (pale yellow) and 2006 (green).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.savethetigerfund.org |title=Wild Tiger Conservation |publisher=Save The Tiger Fund |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref>
| subdivision_ranks = [[Subspecies]]
| subdivision =
''[[Bengal tiger|P. t. tigris]]''<br/>
''[[Indochinese tiger|P. t. corbetti]]''<br />
''[[Malayan tiger|P. t. jacksoni]]''<br />
''[[Sumatran tiger|P. t. sumatrae]]''<br />
''[[Siberian tiger|P. t. altaica]]''<br />
''[[South China tiger|P. t. amoyensis]]''<br />
†''[[Caspian tiger|P. t. virgata]]''<br />
†''[[Bali tiger|P. t. balica]]''<br />
†''[[Javan Tiger|P. t. sondaica]]''
}}
The '''tiger''' (''Panthera tigris''), a member of the [[Felidae]] family, is the largest of the four "[[big cat]]s" in the [[genus]] ''[[Panthera]]''.<ref name="britannica">{{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9072439/tiger|title=Encyclopaedia Britannica Online – Tiger (''Panthera tigris'')|accessdate=25 September 2007}}</ref> Native to much of eastern and southern [[Asia]], the tiger is an [[apex predator]] and an [[obligate carnivore]]. Reaching up to {{convert|3.3|m|ft|abbr=off}} in total length, weighing up to 300 kilograms (660&nbsp;pounds), and having canines up to 4&nbsp;inches long,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://animal.discovery.com/videos/animal-face-off-lion-vs-tiger.html |title=Animal Face-Off: Lion vs. Tiger : Video : Animal Planet |publisher=Animal.discovery.com |date=2008-04-29 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> the larger tiger subspecies are comparable in size to the biggest extinct felids.<ref name = "Lynx">[http://lynx.uio.no/lynx/catsgportal/cat-website/20_cat-website/home/index_en.htm Cat Specialist Group].</ref><ref name="bbc">{{cite web|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/wildfacts/factfiles/19.shtml|title=BBC Wildfacts – Tiger}}</ref> Aside from their great bulk and power, their most recognisable feature is a pattern of dark vertical [[stripe]]s that overlays near-white to reddish-orange fur, with lighter underparts. The most numerous tiger subspecies is the [[Bengal tiger]] while the largest is the [[Siberian tiger]].


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Tigers have a lifespan of 10–15 years in the wild, but can live longer than 20 years in captivity.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defenders.org/wildlife_and_habitat/wildlife/tiger.php |title=Tiger Facts and Sound – Panthera tigris – Defenders of Wildlife – Defenders of Wildlife |publisher=Defenders.org |date=2010-02-14 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> They are highly adaptable and range from the Siberian [[taiga]] to open [[grassland]]s and tropical [[mangrove]] swamps.

They are territorial and generally solitary animals, often requiring large contiguous areas of habitat that support their prey demands. This, coupled with the fact that they are indigenous to some of the more densely populated places on earth, has caused significant conflicts with humans. Three of the nine subspecies of modern tiger have gone [[Extinction|extinct]], and the remaining six are classified as [[Endangered species|endangered]], some critically so. The primary direct causes are [[habitat destruction]], [[Habitat fragmentation|fragmentation]] and [[hunting]].

Historically tigers have existed from [[Mesopotamia]] and the [[Caucasus]] throughout most of [[South Asia|South]] and [[East Asia]]. Today the range of the species is radically reduced. While all surviving species are under formal protection, poaching, habitat destruction and [[inbreeding depression]] continue to threaten the tigers.

Tigers are among the most recognizable and popular of the world's [[charismatic megafauna]]. They have featured prominently in ancient [[mythology]] and [[folklore]], and continue to be depicted in modern films and literature. Tigers appear on many [[flag]]s and [[Coat of arms|coats of arms]], as [[mascot]]s for sporting teams, and as the [[national emblem|national animal]] of several Asian nations, including [[India]].<ref>{{cite web |title= National Animal|url=http://india.gov.in/knowindia/national_animal.php|publisher=[[Govt. of India]] Official website |page=}}</ref>

==Naming and etymology==
The word "tiger" is taken from the Greek word "''tigris''", which is possibly derived from a [[Persian language|Persian]] source meaning "arrow", a reference to the animal's speed and also the origin for the name of the [[Tigris]] river.<ref name="Liddell">{{cite book|author=[[Henry Liddell|Liddell, Henry George]] and [[Robert Scott (philologist)|Robert Scott]]|year=1980|title=[[A Greek-English Lexicon]] (Abridged Edition)|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|location=United Kingdom|isbn=0-19-910207-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=tiger |title='Tiger' at the Online Etymology Dictionary |publisher=Etymonline.com |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> In American English, "tigress" was first recorded in 1611. It was one of the many species originally described by [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]] in his 18th&nbsp;century work, ''[[Systema Naturae]]'': he called it ''Felis tigris''.<ref name="Linn1758">{{cite book
| last = Linnaeus
| first = Carolus
| authorlink = Carolus Linnaeus
| title = Systema naturae per regna tria naturae:secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis.
| publisher = Holmiae (Laurentii Salvii)
| year = 1758
| page = 41
| url = http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726936
| accessdate = 2008-09-08
| volume = 1
| edition = 10th}}</ref><ref>{{la icon}} {{cite book|last=Linnaeus|first=C.|authorlink=Carolus Linnaeus|title=Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata.|publisher=Holmiae. (Laurentii Salvii). |year=1758| page=824|url=http://dz1.gdz-cms.de/index.php?id=img&no_cache=1&IDDOC=265100}}</ref> The generic component of its scientific designation, ''Panthera tigris'', is often presumed to derive from Greek ''pan-'' ("all") and ''theron'' ("beast"), but this may be a [[folk etymology]]. Although it came into English through the classical languages, ''panthera'' is probably of [[India]]n origin, meaning "the yellowish animal", or "whitish-yellow".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=panther|title=Panther|work=Online Etymology Dictionary|publisher=[[Douglas Harper]]|accessdate=2007-07-05}}</ref>

Tigers rarely form groups (see below), but [[collective noun]]s sometimes used when they do are "streak".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/about/faqs/animals/names.htm|title="Common Questions: What Do You Call a Group of...?">}}</ref>

[[File:Tiger distribution3.PNG|thumb|Range of the tiger including the western part 1900 and 1990]]

==Range and habitat==
{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2009}}
In the past, tigers were found throughout Asia, from the [[Caucasus]] and the [[Caspian Sea]] to Siberia and Indonesia. Today the range of the tiger is only 7% of what it used to be.<ref name="panthera.org">{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Loucks|first2=Colby|last3=Wikramanayake|first3=Eric|last4=Ginsberg|first4=Joshua|last5=Sanderson|first5=Eric|last6=Seidensticker|first6=John|last7=Forrest|first7=Jessica|last8=Bryja|first8=Gosia|last9=Heydlauff|first9=Andrea|title=The Fate of Wild Tigers|journal=BioScience|volume=57|page=508|year=2007|doi=10.1641/B570608}}</ref> Furthermore, within the past decade alone, the estimated area known to be occupied by tigers has declined by 41%.<ref name="panthera.org"/>

During the 19th century, the tiger completely vanished from western Asia and became restricted to isolated pockets in the remaining parts of their range. Today, their range is fragmented, and certain parts degraded, and extends from [[India]] in the west to [[China]] and [[Southeast Asia]] in the east.<ref name="Gubi, S 2007">{{cite journal|title=Conservation news|journal=Oryx|volume=41|page=13|year=2007|doi=10.1017/S0030605307001627}}</ref> The northern limit is close to the [[Amur River]] in south eastern [[Siberia]]. The only large island inhabited by tigers today is [[Sumatra]]. Tigers vanished from [[Java]] and [[Bali]] during the 20th century. In [[Borneo]] they are known only from [[fossil]] remains.

Tiger [[habitat]]s will usually include sufficient [[camouflage|cover]], proximity to [[water]], and an abundance of [[prey]]. [[Bengal Tiger]]s live in many types of forests, including [[wet]]; [[evergreen]]; the semi-evergreen of [[Assam]] and eastern [[Bengal]]; the mangrove forest of the [[Ganges]] Delta; the [[deciduous forest]] of [[Nepal]], and the thorn forests of the Western Ghats. Compared to the lion, the tiger prefers denser vegetation, for which its camouflage colouring is ideally suited, and where a single predator is not at a disadvantage compared with the multiple felines in a pride.

Among the big cats, only the tiger and [[jaguar]] are strong [[aquatic locomotion|swimmers]]; tigers are often found bathing in [[pond]]s, [[lake]]s, and [[river]]s. Unlike other cats, which tend to avoid water, tigers actively seek it out. During the [[afternoon|extreme heat]] of the day, they often cool off in pools. Tigers are excellent swimmers, able to swim up to 4&nbsp;miles and carry dead prey across [[lake]]s.

==Physical characteristics, taxonomy and evolution==
The oldest remains of a tiger-like cat, called ''[[Panthera palaeosinensis]]'', have been found in China and Java. This species lived about 2 million years ago, at the beginning of the [[Pleistocene]], and was smaller than a modern tiger. The earliest fossils of true tigers are known from Java, and are between 1.6 and 1.8 million years old. Distinct fossils from the early and middle Pleistocene were also discovered in deposits from China, and Sumatra. A subspecies called the '''[[Trinil Tiger|Trinil tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris trinilensis'') lived about 1.2 million years ago and is known from fossils found at [[Trinil]] in [[Java]].<ref>Van den Hoek Ostende. 1999. Javan Tiger – Ruthlessly hunted down. [http://www.naturalis.nl/300pearls 300 Pearls – Museum highlights of natural diversity]. Downloaded on August 11, 2006.</ref>

Tigers first reached India and northern Asia in the late Pleistocene, reaching eastern [[Bering land bridge|Beringia]] (but not the American Continent), [[Japan]], and [[Sakhalin]]. Fossils found in Japan indicate that the local tigers were, like the surviving island subspecies, smaller than the mainland forms. This may be due to the phenomenon in which body size is related to environmental space (see [[insular dwarfism]]), or perhaps the availability of prey. Until the [[Holocene]], tigers also lived in [[Borneo]], as well as on the island of [[Palawan]] in the [[Philippines]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Piper|first1=Philip J.|last2=Ochoa|first2=Janine|last3=Lewis|first3=Helen|last4=Paz|first4=Victor|last5=Ronquillo|first5=Wilfredo P.|title=The first evidence for the past presence of the tiger Panthera tigris (L.) on the island of Palawan, Philippines: Extinction in an island population|journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology|volume=264|page=123|year=2008|doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.04.003}}</ref>

===Physical characteristics===
[[File:Siberian Tiger sf.jpg|thumb|Siberian tiger]]
Tigers are easy to recognise. They typically have rusty-reddish to brown-rusty coats, a whitish medial and ventral area, a white "fringe" that surrounds the face, and stripes that vary from brown or gray to pure black. The form and density of stripes differs between subspecies (as well as the ground coloration of the fur; for instance, Siberian tigers are usually paler than other tiger subspecies), but most tigers have over 100 stripes.

The pattern of stripes is unique to each animal, and thus could potentially be used to identify individuals, much in the same way that [[fingerprint]]s are used to identify humans. This is not, however, a preferred method of identification, due to the difficulty of recording the stripe pattern of a wild tiger. It seems likely that the function of stripes is [[camouflage]], serving to help tigers conceal themselves amongst the dappled shadows and long grass of their environment as they stalk their prey. The stripe pattern is also found on the skin of the tiger. If a tiger were to be shaved, its distinctive camouflage pattern would be preserved.

Like other big cats, tigers have a white spot on the backs of their ears. These spots, called [[eyespot (mimicry)|ocelli]], serve a social function, by communicating the animal's mental state to [[conspecifics]] in the gloom of dense forest or in tall grass.
[[File:TigerSkelLyd1.png|thumb|left|Skeleton]]

Tigers have the additional distinction of being the heaviest cats found in the wild.<ref name="WWF">{{cite web|url= http://www.worldwildlife.org/tigers/ecology.m|title=WWF – Tigers – Ecology}}{{dead link|date=December 2010}}</ref> They also have powerfully built legs and shoulders, with the result that they, like lions, have the ability to pull down prey substantially heavier than themselves. However, the subspecies differ markedly in size, tending to increase proportionally with [[latitude]], as predicted by [[Bergmann's Rule]].

Large male [[Siberian Tiger]]s (''Panthera tigris altaica'') can reach a total length of 3.5&nbsp;m "over curves" (3.3&nbsp;m. "between pegs") and a weight of 306&nbsp;kilograms,.<ref name="der-tiger">{{de icon}} Vratislav Mazak: ''Der Tiger''. Nachdruck der 3. Auflage von 1983. Westarp Wissenschaften Hohenwarsleben, 2004 ISBN 3-89432-759-6</ref> This is considerably larger than the sizes reached by island-dwelling tigers such as the Sumatran, the smallest living subspecies, with a body weight of only 75–140&nbsp;kg.<ref name="der-tiger"/>

Tigresses are smaller than the males in each subspecies, although the size difference between male and female tigers tends to be more pronounced in the larger subspecies of tiger, with males weighing up to 1.7 times more than the females.<ref>Matthiessen, Peter. 2000. Tigers in the Snow, p. 47. The Harvill Press, London.</ref> In addition, male tigers have wider forepaw pads than females. Biologists use this difference to determine gender based on tiger tracks.<ref name = "Tigersnow"/> The skull of the tiger is very similar to that of the lion, though the frontal region is usually not as depressed or flattened, with a slightly longer postorbital region. The skull of a lion has broader nasal openings. However, due to the amount of skull variation in the two species, usually, only the structure of the lower jaw can be used as a reliable indicator of species.<ref name="USSR">{{cite book|author = V.G. Heptner & A.A. Sludskii|title = Mammals of the Soviet Union, Volume II, Part 2|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=UxWZ-OmTqVoC&pg=PA53|year =1992|page =53|isbn = 9004088768}}</ref>

Tigers have round pupils and yellow irises (except for the blue eyes of white tigers).
Due to a retinal adaptation that reflects light back to the retina, the night vision of tigers is six times better than that of humans.<ref>[http://www.zooschool.ecsd.net/Tiger.htm Zoo animals]. (2010)</ref>

===Subspecies===
[[File:A tiger in Pilibhit Tiger Reserve.jpg|thumb|right|A [[Bengal tiger|Bengal tigress]] with her cub.]]
There are nine recent [[subspecies]] of tiger, three of which are [[Extinction|extinct]]. Their historical range (severely diminished today) ran through [[Bangladesh]], [[Siberia]], [[Iran]], [[Afghanistan]], [[India]], [[China]], and [[southeast Asia]], including some [[Indonesia|Indonesian islands]]. The surviving subspecies, in descending order of wild population, are:

*The '''[[Bengal tiger]]''' or the '''Royal Bengal tiger''' (''Panthera tigris tigris'') is the most common subspecies of tiger and is found primarily in [[India]] and [[Bangladesh]].<ref>John L Gittleman [http://books.google.com/books?id=LvM-3i6z8iQC&pg=PA1394 Exploring Mammals], Marshall Cavendish, 2007 ISBN 0761477195</ref> It lives in varied habitats: grasslands, subtropical and tropical rainforests, scrub forests, wet and dry deciduous forests, and mangroves. Males in the wild usually weigh {{convert|205|to|227|kg|lb|abbr=on}}, while the average female will weigh about 141&nbsp;kg.<ref name="university2002">Sunquist, Mel and Fiona Sunquist. 2002. Wild Cats of the World. University Of Chicago Press, Chicago</ref> However, the northern Indian and the Nepalese Bengal tigers are somewhat bulkier than those found in the south of the Indian Subcontinent, with males averaging around {{convert|235|kg|lb}}.<ref name="university2002"/> While conservationists already believed the population to be below 2,000,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianjungles.com/090805d.htm |title=Task force says tigers under siege |publisher=Indianjungles.com |date=2005-08-05 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> the most recent audit by the Indian Government's [[National Tiger Conservation Authority]] has estimated the number at just 1,411 wild tigers (1165–1657 allowing for [[Errors and residuals in statistics|statistical error]]), a drop of 60% in the past decade.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Wade|first=Matt|title=Threat to a national symbol as India's wild tigers vanish|newspaper=The Age (Melbourne)|date=February 15, 2008|page=9|ref=harv}}</ref> Since 1972, there has been a massive wildlife conservation project, known as [[Project Tiger]], to protect the Bengal tiger. Despite increased efforts by Indian officials, poaching remains rampant and at least one Tiger Reserve ([[Sariska Tiger Reserve]]) has lost its entire tiger population to poaching.<ref>{{cite web |title=No tigers found in Sariska: CBI |publisher=DeccanHerald.com |url=http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/apr112005/national130442005410.asp |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070210220826/http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/apr112005/national130442005410.asp |archivedate=2007-02-10 |accessdate=2007-07-20}} (Archive).</ref> The passing of the [[Forest Rights Act]] by the Indian government in 2006 has worsened the situation as evidence has shown that human habitats and tigers cannot co-exist and has pushed the Indian tiger on the brink of extinction.<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/the-face-of-a-doomed-species-398373.html "Tigers driven to edge of extinction"], ''Independent'', accessed 31 Oct 2007</ref>

[[File:Tiger 032.jpg|thumb|right|Indochinese tiger]]
*The '''[[Indochinese Tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris corbetti''), also called ''[[Jim Corbett (hunter)|Corbett's]]'' tiger, is found in [[Cambodia]], [[China]], [[Laos]], [[Burma]], [[Thailand]], and [[Vietnam]]. These tigers are smaller and darker than Bengal tigers: Males weigh from {{convert|150|–|190|kg|lb|abbr=on}} while females are smaller at {{convert|110|–|140|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. Their preferred habitat is forests in mountainous or hilly regions. Estimates of the Indochinese tiger population vary between 1,200 to 1,800, with only several hundred left in the wild. All existing populations are at extreme risk from [[poaching]], prey depletion as a result of poaching of primary prey species such as deer and wild pigs, [[habitat fragmentation]] and [[inbreeding]]. In Vietnam, almost three-quarters of the tigers killed provide stock for Chinese pharmacies.

[[File:Tiger in the water.jpg|thumb|left|Malayan tiger]]
*The '''[[Malayan Tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris jacksoni''), exclusively found in the southern part of the [[Malay Peninsula]], was not considered a subspecies in its own right until 2004. The new classification came about after a study by Luo et al. from the [[Laboratory of Genomic Diversity]] Study,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://home.ncifcrf.gov/ccr/lgd/|title=Laboratory of Genomic Diversity LGD}}</ref> part of the [[National Cancer Institute]] of the United States. Recent counts showed there are 600–800 tigers in the wild, making it the third largest tiger population, behind the Bengal tiger and the Indochinese tiger. The Malayan tiger is the smallest of the mainland tiger subspecies, and the second smallest living subspecies, with males averaging about 120&nbsp;kg and females about 100&nbsp;kg in weight. The Malayan tiger is a national icon in Malaysia, appearing on its [[Emblem of Malaysia|coat of arms]] and in logos of Malaysian institutions, such as [[Maybank]].

[[File:Panthera tigris sumatran subspecies.jpg|thumb|Sumatran tiger]]
*The '''[[Sumatran Tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris sumatrae'') is found only on the Indonesian island of [[Sumatra]], and is [[Critically endangered species|critically endangered]].<ref>{{IUCN2006|assessors=Cat Specialist Group|year=1996|id=15966|title=Panthera tigris ssp. sumatrae|downloaded=11 May 2006}} Database entry includes a brief justification of why this subspecies is critically endangered and the criteria used.</ref> It is the smallest of all living tiger subspecies, with adult males weighing between {{convert|100|–|140|kg|lb|abbr=on}} and females {{convert|75|–|110|kg|lb|abbr=on}}.<ref>*{{aut|Nowak, Ronald M.}} (1999) ''Walker's Mammals of the World''. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-5789-9</ref> Their small size is an adaptation to the thick, dense forests of the island of Sumatra where they reside, as well as the smaller-sized prey. The wild population is estimated at between 400 and 500, seen chiefly in the island's [[List of national parks of Indonesia|national parks]]. Recent genetic testing has revealed the presence of unique genetic markers, indicating that it may develop into a separate species,{{Specify|date=July 2008}}<!--ANY population (regardless of "unique genetic markers"), isolated or not (cf. sympatric speciation), may evolve into another species if given enough time --> if it does not go extinct.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Cracraft|first1=Joel|last2=Feinstein|first2=Julie|last3=Vaughn|first3=Jeffrey|last4=Helm-Bychowski|first4=Kathleen|title=Sorting out tigers (Panthera tigris): mitochondrial sequences, nuclear inserts, systematics, and conservation genetics|url=http://research.amnh.org/vz/ornithology/pdfs/1998c.%20tiger%20conservation.pdf|journal=Animal Conservation|volume=1|page=139|year=1998|doi=10.1111/j.1469-1795.1998.tb00021.x}}</ref> This has led to suggestions that Sumatran tigers should have greater priority for conservation than any other subspecies. While [[habitat destruction]] is the main threat to existing tiger population (logging continues even in the supposedly protected national parks), 66 tigers were recorded as being shot and killed between 1998 and 2000, or nearly 20% of the total population.

[[File:Tiger in the snow at the Detroit Zoo March 2008 pic 2.jpg|thumb|right|Siberian tiger]]
*The '''[[Siberian tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris altaica''), also known as the ''Amur'', ''Manchurian'', ''Altaic'', ''Korean'' or ''North China'' tiger, which is the most northernmost subspecies, is confined to the [[Amur River|Amur]]-[[Ussuri River|Ussuri]] region of [[Primorsky Krai]] and [[Khabarovsk Krai]] in far eastern [[Siberia]], where it is now protected.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1644/1545-1542(2003)084<0288:RPOWFA>2.0.CO;2|url=http://www.jstor.org/pss/1383657|author=Kerley, L.L., J.M. Goodrich, D.G. Miquelle, E.N. Smirnov, H.G. Quigley, and M.G. Hornocker|year=2003|title=Reproductive parameters of wild female Amur (Siberian) tigers (Panthera tigris altaica)|journal=Journal of Mammology |volume=84|pages=288–298}}</ref> The largest subspecies of tiger, it has a head and body length of 160–180&nbsp;cm for females and 190–230+&nbsp;cm for males, plus a tail of about 60–110&nbsp;cm long (about 270–330&nbsp;cm in total length) and an average weight of around {{convert|227|kg|lb}} for males,<ref name="university2002"/> the Amur tiger is also noted for its thick coat, distinguished by a paler golden hue and fewer stripes. The heaviest wild Siberian tiger on record weighed in at 384&nbsp;kg,<ref>Graham Batemann: ''Die Tiere unserer Welt Raubtiere'', Bertelsmann Verlag, 1986.</ref> but according to [[Vratislav Mazák|Mazak]] these giants are not confirmed via reliable references.<ref name = "der-tiger"/> Even so, a six-month old Siberian tiger can be as big as a fully grown [[leopard]]. The last two censuses (1996 and 2005) found 450–500 Amur tigers within their single, and more or less continuous, range making it one of the largest undivided tiger populations in the world. Genetic research in 2009 demonstrated that the Siberian tiger, and the western "[[Caspian tiger]]" (once thought to have been a separate subspecies that became extinct in the wild in the late 1950s<ref name="casp">{{cite web|url=http://www.tigerhomes.org/animal/curriculums/caspian-tiger-pc.cfm|title=The Caspian Tiger – ''Panthera tigris virgata''|accessdate=12 October 2007}}</ref><ref name="casp2">{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/caspian.html|title=The Caspian Tiger at www.lairweb.org.nz|accessdate=12 October 2007}}</ref>) are actually the same subspecies, since the separation of the two populations may have occurred as recently as the past century due to human intervention.<ref name="driscoll">{{cite web|url=http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0004125 |title=Mitochondrial Phylogeography Illuminates the Origin of the Extinct Caspian Tiger and Its Relationship to the Amur Tiger |publisher=Plosone.org |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref>

[[File:Panthera tigris amoyensis.jpg|thumb|right|South China tiger]]
*The '''[[South China Tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris amoyensis''), also known as the ''Amoy'' or ''Xiamen'' tiger, is the most critically endangered subspecies of tiger and is listed as one of the 10 most endangered animals in the world.<ref>[http://www.china.org.cn/english/China/217122.htm www.china.org.cn] Retrieved on 6 October 2007</ref>{{Clarify|10 most endangered species, or most endangered subspecies?|date=August 2008}} One of the smaller tiger subspecies, the length of the South China tiger ranges from {{convert|2.2|–|2.6|m|in|abbr=on}} for both males and females. Males weigh between {{convert|127|and|177|kg|lb|abbr=on}} while females weigh between {{convert|100|and|118|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. From 1983 to 2007, no South China tigers were sighted.<ref name="xinhua">{{cite web|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/newscenter/2007-10/13/content_6873252.htm |title=绝迹24年华南虎重现陕西 村民冒险拍下照片 |publisher=News.xinhuanet.com |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> In 2007 a farmer spotted a tiger and handed in photographs to the authorities as proof.<ref name="xinhua"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7042257.stm |title=Rare China tiger seen in the wild |publisher=BBC News |date=2007-10-12 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> The photographs in question, however, were later exposed as fake, copied from a Chinese calendar and digitally altered, and the “sighting” turned into a massive scandal.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-11/17/content_6261263.htm|title=South China tiger photos are 'fake' |publisher=China Daily |date=2007-11-17|accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-06/29/content_6803353.htm|title=South China tiger photos are fake: provincial authorities |publisher=China Daily date=2008-06-29|accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/china/article4237441.ece|title=Farmer's photo of rare South China tiger is exposed as fake |publisher=The Times date=2008-06-30|accessdate=2009-03-07|location=London|first=Jeremy|last=Page|date=2008-06-30}}</ref><br> In 1977, the Chinese government passed a law banning the killing of wild tigers, but this may have been too late to save the subspecies, since it is possibly already extinct in the wild. There are currently 59 known [[Captivity (animal)|captive]] South China tigers, all within China, but these are known to be descended from only six animals. Thus, the [[genetic diversity]] required to maintain the subspecies may no longer exist. Currently, there are breeding efforts to reintroduce these tigers to the wild.

===Extinct subspecies===
[[File:Panthera tigris balica.jpg|thumb|A hunted down Balinese tiger]]
*The '''[[Bali Tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris balica'') was limited to the island of [[Bali]]. They were the smallest of all tiger subspecies, with a weight of 90–100&nbsp;kg in males and 65–80&nbsp;kg in females.<ref name="der-tiger"/> These tigers were hunted to extinction—the last Balinese tiger is thought to have been killed at Sumbar Kima, West Bali on 27 September 1937; this was an adult female. No Balinese tiger was ever held in captivity. The tiger still plays an important role in [[Balinese Hinduism|Balinese]] [[Hinduism]].
[[File:Panthera tigris sondaica 01.jpg|left|thumb|A photograph of a Javan tiger.]]
*The '''[[Javan Tiger|Javan tiger]]''' (''Panthera tigris sondaica'') was limited to the Indonesian island of [[Java]]. It now seems likely that this subspecies became extinct in the 1980s, as a result of hunting and habitat destruction, but the extinction of this subspecies was extremely probable from the 1950s onwards (when it is thought that fewer than 25 tigers remained in the wild). The last confirmed specimen was sighted in 1979, but there were a few reported sightings during the 1990s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20021030.S03 |title=Bambang M. 2002. In search of 'extinct' Javan tiger. The Jakarta Post (October 30) |publisher=Thejakartapost.com |accessdate=2009-03-07 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080120013615/http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20021030.S03 |archivedate = January 20, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.javantiger.or.id|title=Harimau jawa belum punah! (Indonesian Javan Tiger website)}}</ref> With a weight of 100–141&nbsp;kg for males and 75–115&nbsp;kg for females, the Javan tiger was one of the smaller subspecies, approximately the same size as the Sumatran tiger.{{Citation needed|date=August 2008}}

[[File:Panthera tigris virgata.jpg|thumb|A captive Caspian Tiger, [[Berlin Zoological Garden|Berlin Zoo]] 1899]]
*The '''[[Caspian Tiger]]''' (formerly ''Panthera tigris virgata)'', also known as the '''Persian tiger''' or '''Turanian tiger''' was the westernmost population of [[Siberian tiger]], found in [[Iran]], [[Iraq]], [[Afghanistan]], [[Turkey]], [[Mongolia]], [[Kazakhstan]], the [[Caucasus]], [[Tajikistan]], [[Turkmenistan]], and [[Uzbekistan]] until it apparently became [[extinction|extinct]] in the late 1950s, though there have been several alleged more recent sightings of the tiger.<ref name="casp2"/> Though originally thought to have been a distinct [[subspecies]], genetic research in 2009 suggest that the animal was largely identical to the [[Siberian tiger]].<ref name="driscoll"/>

===Hybrids===
{{further|[[Panthera hybrid]], [[Liger]] and [[Tiglon]]}}
Hybridisation among the big cats, including the tiger, was first conceptualised in the 19th century, when zoos were particularly interested in the pursuit of finding oddities to display for financial gain.<ref name="hybridisation">{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/hybridisation.html|title=History of big cat hybridisation|accessdate=28 September 2007}}</ref> [[Lion]]s have been known to [[Reproduction|breed]] with tigers (most often the [[Siberian Tiger|Amur]] and [[Bengal Tiger|Bengal]] subspecies) to create [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrids]] called [[liger]]s and [[Tiglon|tigon]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Guggisberg |first=C. A. W. |title=Wild Cats of the World |year=1975 |publisher=Taplinger Publishing |location=New York |isbn=0-8008-8324-1}}</ref> Such hybrids were once commonly bred in zoos, but this is now discouraged due to the emphasis on conserving species and subspecies. Hybrids are still bred in private menageries and in zoos in [[China]].

The liger is a cross between a male lion and a tigress.<ref name="liger">{{cite book| last=Markel |first=Scott| coauthors= Darryl León| year= 2003 |title=Sequence Analysis in a Nutshell: a guide to common tools and databases|publisher= O'Reily |location=Sebastopol, California |isbn=0-596-00494-X}}</ref> Because the lion sire passes on a growth-promoting gene, but the corresponding growth-inhibiting gene from the [[female]] tiger is absent, ligers grow far larger than either parent. They share physical and behavioural qualities of both parent species (spots and stripes on a sandy background). [[Male]] ligers are sterile, but female ligers are often fertile. Males have about a 50% chance of having a mane, but, even if they do, their manes will be only around half the size of that of a pure lion. Ligers are typically between 10 to 12&nbsp;feet in length, and can be between 800 and 1,000&nbsp;pounds or more.<ref name=liger/>

The less common tigon is a cross between the lioness and the male tiger.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9001344/tigon|title= tigon – Encyclopædia Britannica Article|accessdate=12 September 2007}}</ref> <!-- (commented out - not really necessary - can reinsert when ref arises) Because the male tiger does not pass on a growth-promoting gene and the lioness passes on a growth inhibiting gene, tigons are often relatively small, only weighing up to 150 kilograms (350&nbsp;lb),{{Fact|date=August 2007}} which is about 20% smaller than lions. Like ligers, they have physical and behavioural traits from both parental species and males are sterile.-->

===Colour variations===
====White tigers====
{{Main|White tiger}}
[[File:White tiger bangalore.jpg|thumb|left|A Bengal white tiger in [[Bannerghatta National Park]] in [[Bangalore]]]]
[[File:Singapore Zoo Tigers.jpg|thumb|rightt|A pair of white tigers at the [[Singapore Zoo]].]]
There is a well-known mutation that produces the [[white tiger]], technically known as ''chinchilla albinistic'',<ref name="nz">{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/white.html|title=White tigers|accessdate=25 September 2007}}</ref> an animal which is rare in the wild, but widely bred in zoos due to its popularity. Breeding of white tigers will often lead to [[inbreeding]] (as the trait is [[recessive]]). Many initiatives have taken place in white and orange tiger mating in an attempt to remedy the issue, often mixing subspecies in the process. Such inbreeding has led to white tigers having a greater likelihood of being born with physical defects, such as cleft palates and [[scoliosis]] (curvature of the spine).<ref name="unusual1">{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/white.html |title=The white tiger today and the unusual white lion |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bigcatrescue.org/cats/wild/white_tigers.htm |title=White Tigers |publisher=Bigcatrescue.org |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> Furthermore, white tigers are prone to having crossed eyes (a condition known as [[strabismus]]). Even apparently healthy white tigers generally do not live as long as their orange counterparts. Recordings of white tigers were first made in the early 19th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indiantiger.org/white-tigers/white-tiger-facts.html|title=White Tiger Facts|accessdate=26 September 2007}}</ref> They can only occur when both parents carry the rare gene found in white tigers; this gene has been calculated to occur in only one in every 10,000 births. The white tiger is not a separate sub-species, but only a colour variation; since the only white tigers that have been observed in the wild have been Bengal tigers<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bigcathaven.org/cats/wild/white_tigers_genetics.htm |title=White Tigers |publisher=Bigcathaven.org |accessdate=2010-06-10}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> (and all white tigers in captivity are at least part Bengal), it is commonly thought that the recessive gene that causes the white colouring is probably carried only by Bengal tigers, although the reasons for this are not known.<ref name="unusual1"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bigcatrescue.org/cats/wild/snowtigers.htm |title=Snow Tigers |publisher=Bigcatrescue.org |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> Nor are they in any way more endangered than tigers are generally, this being a common misconception. Another misconception is that white tigers are [[Albinism|albinos]], despite the fact that pigment is evident in the white tiger's stripes. They are distinct not only because of their white hue; they also have blue eyes.

====Golden tabby tigers====
{{Main|Golden tabby}}
[[File:Golden tiger 1 - Buffalo Zoo.jpg|thumb|A rare golden tabby/strawberry tiger at the [[Buffalo Zoo]].]]
In addition, another recessive gene may create a very unusual "golden tabby" colour variation, sometimes known as "strawberry." Golden tabby tigers have light gold fur, pale legs and faint orange stripes. Their fur tends to be much thicker than normal.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/tabby.html |title=Golden tabby Bengal tigers |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> There are extremely few golden tabby tigers in captivity, around 30 in all. Like white tigers, strawberry tigers are invariably at least part Bengal. Some golden tabby tigers, called [[heterozygous tiger]]s, carry the white tiger gene, and when two such tigers are mated, can produce some stripeless white offspring. Both white and golden tabby tigers tend to be larger than average Bengal tigers.

====Other colour variations====
There are also unconfirmed reports of a "blue" or slate-coloured tiger, the [[Maltese Tiger]], and largely or totally [[Black tiger (animal)|black tigers]], and these are assumed, if real, to be intermittent mutations rather than distinct species.<ref name="nz" />

==Biology and behaviour==
===Territorial behaviour===
Tigers are essentially solitary and territorial animals. The size of a tiger's home range mainly depends on prey abundance, and, in the case of male tigers, on access to females. A tigress may have a territory of 20&nbsp;[[square kilometre]]s, while the territories of males are much larger, covering 60–100&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>. The range of a male tends to overlap those of several females.

[[File:Sumatraanse Tijger.jpg|thumb|left|Tigers for the most part are solitary animals]]
The relationships between individuals can be quite complex, and it appears that there is no set "rule" that tigers follow with regards to territorial rights and infringing territories. For instance, although for the most part tigers avoid each other, both male and female tigers have been documented sharing kills. George Schaller observed a male tiger share a kill with two females and four cubs. Females are often reluctant to let males near their cubs, but Schaller saw that these females made no effort to protect or keep their cubs from the male, suggesting that the male might have been the father of the cubs. In contrast to male lions, male tigers will allow the females and cubs to feed on the kill first. Furthermore, tigers seem to behave relatively amicably when sharing kills, in contrast to lions, which tend to squabble and fight. Unrelated tigers have also been observed feeding on prey together. The following quotation is from Stephen Mills' book ''Tiger'', as he describes an event witnessed by Valmik Thapar and Fateh Singh Rathore in Ranthambhore:<ref>Mills, Stephen. (2004). Tiger. Pg. 89. BBC Books, London</ref>

<blockquote>
A dominant tigress they called Padmini killed a 250&nbsp;kg (550-lb) male nilgai – a very large antelope. They found her at the kill just after dawn with her three 14-month-old cubs and they watched uninterrupted for the next ten hours. During this period the family was joined by two adult females and one adult male – all offspring from Padmini's previous litters and by two unrelated tigers, one female the other unidentified. By three o'clock there were no fewer than nine tigers round the kill.
</blockquote>

When young female tigers first establish a territory, they tend to do so fairly close to their mother's area. The overlap between the female and her mother's territory tends to wane with increasing time. Males, however, wander further than their female counterparts, and set out at a younger age to mark out their own area. A young male will acquire territory either by seeking out a range devoid of other male tigers, or by living as a transient in another male's territory until he is old and strong enough to challenge the resident male. The highest mortality rate (30–35% per year) amongst adult tigers occurs for young male tigers who have just left their natal area, seeking out territories of their own.<ref name="Mills, Stephen. pg. 86">Mills, Stephen. pg. 86</ref>

[[File:Tigers playing at Pilibhit Tiger Reserve area.jpg|thumb|Two male Bengal tiger siblings play with each other in the [[Pilibhit Tiger Reserve]], India.]]
Male tigers are generally more intolerant of other males within their territory than females are of other females. For the most part, however, territorial disputes are usually solved by displays of intimidation, rather than outright aggression. Several such incidents have been observed, in which the subordinate tiger yielded defeat by rolling onto its back, showing its belly in a submissive posture.<ref>Thapar, Valmik. (1989). Tiger:Portrait of a Predator. pg. 88. Smithmark Pub, New York</ref> Once dominance has been established, a male may actually tolerate a subordinate within his range, as long as they do not live in too close quarters.<ref name="Mills, Stephen. pg. 86"/> The most violent disputes tend to occur between two males when a female is in [[Estrous cycle|oestrus]], and may result in the death of one of the males, although this is a rare occurrence.<ref name="Mills, Stephen. pg. 86"/><ref>Thapar, Valmik. pg. 88</ref>

To identify his territory, the male marks trees by [[territorial marking|spraying]] of urine and anal gland secretions, as well as marking trails with [[Feces|scat]]. Males show a grimacing face, called the [[Flehmen response]], when identifying a female's reproductive condition by sniffing their urine markings. Like the other ''Panthera'' cats, tigers can [[roar (utterance)|roar]]. Tigers will roar for both aggressive and non-aggressive reasons. Other tiger vocal communications include moans, hisses, growls and [[Prusten|chuffs]].

Tigers have been studied in the wild using a variety of techniques. The populations of tigers were estimated in the past using plaster casts of their [[pugmark]]s. This method was found faulty<ref>Karanth, K.U., Nichols, J.D., Seidensticker, J., Dinerstein, E., Smith, J.L.D., McDougal, C., Johnsingh, A.J.T., Chundawat, R.S. (2003) Science deficiency in conservation practice: the monitoring of tiger populations in India. Animal Conservation (61): 141–146 [http://hdl.handle.net/10088/338 Full text]</ref> and attempts were made to use camera trapping instead. Newer techniques based on [[DNA]] from their scat are also being evaluated. Radio collaring has also been a popular approach to tracking them for study in the wild.

===Hunting and diet===
[[File:037tiger.jpg|thumb|right|Tiger dentition(above), compared with that of an [[Asian black bear]] (below). The large canines are used to make the killing bite, but they tear meat when feeding using the carnassial teeth.]]
In the wild, tigers mostly feed on larger and medium sized [[animal]]s. [[sambar deer|Sambar]], [[gaur]], [[chital]], [[barasingha]], [[wild boar]], [[nilgai]] and both [[Wild Asian Water Buffalo|water buffalo]] and [[domestic buffalo]] are the tiger's favoured prey in [[India]]. Sometimes, they also prey on [[leopard]]s, [[python molurus|pythons]], [[Sloth Bear|sloth bears]] and [[crocodile]]s. In Siberia the main prey species are [[manchurian wapiti]], wild boar, [[sika deer]], [[moose]], [[Siberian Roe Deer|roe deer]], and [[musk deer]]. In Sumatra, sambar, [[muntjac]], wild boar, and [[malayan tapir]] are preyed on. In the former Caspian tiger's range, prey included [[saiga antelope]], [[camel]]s, [[Caucasian Wisent|caucasian wisent]], [[yak]], and wild horses. Like many predators, they are opportunistic and will eat much smaller prey, such as [[monkey]]s, [[peafowl]]s, [[hare]]s, and [[fish]].

Adult [[elephant]]s are too large to serve as common prey, but conflicts between tigers and elephants do sometimes take place. A case where a tiger killed an adult [[Indian Rhinoceros]] has been observed. Young elephant and rhino calves are occasionally taken. Tigers also sometimes prey on domestic animals such as dogs, cows, horses, and donkeys. These individuals are termed cattle-lifters or cattle-killers in contrast to typical game-killers.<ref name="Perry">{{cite book|author = Perry, Richard|title = The World of the Tiger|year = 1965|page = 260|id = ASIN: B0007DU2IU}}</ref>

Old tigers, or those wounded and rendered incapable of catching their natural prey, have turned into man-eaters; this pattern has recurred frequently across India. An exceptional case is that of the [[Sundarbans]], where healthy tigers prey upon fishermen and villagers in search of forest produce, humans thereby forming a minor part of the tiger's diet.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/maneating7.html |title=Man-eaters. The tiger and lion, attacks on humans |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> Tigers will occasionally eat vegetation for [[dietary fiber]], the fruit of the [[Careya arborea|Slow Match Tree]] being favoured.<ref name="Perry" />

[[File:Tigergebiss.jpg|thumb|upright|Tigers' extremely strong jaws and sharp teeth make them superb predators.]]
Tigers are thought to be nocturnal predators, hunting at night.<ref name="animaldiversity1">ADW:Panthera tigris: Information, http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Panthera_tigris.html</ref> However, in areas where humans are absent, they have been observed via remote controlled, hidden cameras hunting during the daylight hours.<ref>''Tiger: Spy In The Jungle''. John Downer Productions. BBC (2008)</ref> They generally hunt alone and ambush their prey as most other cats do, overpowering them from any angle, using their body size and strength to knock large prey off balance. Even with their great masses, tigers can reach speeds of about 49–65&nbsp;[[kilometres per hour]] (35–40&nbsp;[[miles per hour]]), although they can only do so in short bursts, since they have relatively little stamina; consequently, tigers must be relatively close to their prey before they break their cover. Tigers have great leaping ability; horizontal leaps of up to 10 metres have been reported, although leaps of around half this amount are more typical. However, only one in twenty hunts ends in a successful kill.<ref name="animaldiversity1"/>

When hunting large prey, tigers prefer to bite the throat and use their forelimbs to hold onto the prey, bringing it to the ground. The tiger remains latched onto the neck until its prey dies of [[Strangling|strangulation]].<ref>[http://panthera.org/scientific_publications.html Schaller. G ''The Deer and the Tiger: A Study of Wildlife in India'' 1984, University Of Chicago Press]{{dead link|date=December 2010}}</ref> By this method, gaurs and water buffalos weighing over a ton have been killed by tigers weighing about a sixth as much.<ref>{{Harvnb|Sankhala|1997|p=17}}</ref> With small prey, the tiger bites the [[nape]], often breaking the [[spinal cord]], piercing the [[vertebrate trachea|windpipe]], or severing the [[jugular vein]] or [[common carotid artery]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Sankhala|1997|p=23}}</ref> Though rarely observed, some tigers have been recorded to kill prey by swiping with their paws, which are powerful enough to smash the skulls of domestic cattle,<ref name="Perry" /> and break the backs of sloth bears.<ref name="DHOLE" />

During the 1980s, a tiger named "Genghis" in [[Ranthambhore National Park]] was observed frequently hunting prey through deep lake water,<ref name="publishers1992">Thapar, Valmik. (1992). The Tiger's Destiny. Kyle Cathie Ltd: Publishers, London</ref> a pattern of behaviour that had not been previously witnessed in over 200 years of observations. Moreover, he appeared to be extraordinarily successful for a tiger, with as many as 20% of hunts ending in a kill.

===Reproduction===
[[File:Tigeress with cubs in Kanha Tiger reserve.jpg|thumb|A tigress with her cubs in the [[Kanha Tiger Reserve]], India.]]
Mating can occur all year round, but is generally more common between November and April.<ref name="university1999">Nowak, Ronald M. (1999). Walker's Mammals of the World. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-5789-9</ref> A female is only receptive for a few days and [[mating]] is frequent during that time period. A pair will copulate frequently and noisily, like other cats. The gestation period is 16 weeks. The litter size usually consists of around 3–4 cubs of about {{convert|1|kg|lb}} each, which are born blind and helpless. The females rear them alone, sheltering them in dens such as thickets and rocky crevices. The father of the cubs generally takes no part in rearing them. Unrelated wandering male tigers may even kill cubs to make the female receptive, since the tigress may give birth to another litter within 5 months if the cubs of the previous litter are lost.<ref name="university1999"/> The mortality rate of tiger cubs is fairly high – approximately half do not survive to be more than two years old.<ref name="university1999"/>

There is generally a dominant cub in each litter, which tends to be male but may be of either sex.<ref name="publishers1992"/> This cub generally dominates its siblings during play and tends to be more active, leaving its mother earlier than usual. At 8 weeks, the cubs are ready to follow their mother out of the den, although they do not travel with her as she roams her territory until they are older. The cubs become independent around 18 months of age, but it is not until they are around 2–2½ years old that they leave their mother. Females reach sexual maturity at 3–4 years, whereas males reach sexual maturity at 4–5 years.<ref name="university1999"/>

Over the course of her life, a female tiger will give birth to an approximately equal number of male and female cubs. Tigers breed well in captivity, and the captive population in the United States may rival the wild population of the world.<ref name="zoogoer">{{cite web|url=http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Publications/ZooGoer/1998/2/tigerfacts.cfm|title=Zoogoer – Tiger, ''Panthera tigris''|accessdate=5 October 2007}}</ref>

===Interspecific predatory relationships===
[[File:Tigerdholes.jpg|thumb|''Tiger hunted by wild dogs'' ([[dhole]]s) as illustrated in ''Samuel Howett & Edward Orme, Hand Coloured, Aquatint Engravings'', Published London 1807.]]
Tigers may kill such formidable predators as [[leopard]]s, [[Pythonidae|pythons]] and even [[crocodile]]s on occasion,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bangalinet.com/tiger1.htm |title=Tiger – |publisher=Bangalinet.com |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oaklandzoo.org/meet_the_animals/tiger |title=Tiger – Oakland Zoo |publisher=Oaklandzoo.org |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>Sunquist, Fiona & Mel Sunquist. 2002. [http://books.google.com/books?id=F_Wfa9BpmIYC&printsec=frontcover Tiger Moon], The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, ISBN 0226779971</ref> although predators typically avoid one another. When seized by a crocodile, a tiger will strike at the reptile's eyes with its paws.<ref name="Perry"/> Eighteenth century Physician [[Oliver Goldsmith]] described the frequent conflicts between [[mugger crocodile]]s and tigers that occurred during that time. When the tigers impelled by thirst, frequently descended to the rivers to drink and, on these occasions tigers were seized and killed by the muggers, though more often the tiger escaped and the reptile was disabled.<ref>{{cite book |title=A History Of The Earth, And Animated Nature, Volume 2 |first=Oliver |last=Goldsmith |publisher=Nabu Press |year=2010 |isbn=1-1451-1108-4 |page=297}}</ref> Leopards dodge competition from tigers by hunting in different times of the day and hunting different prey.<ref name="Haemig">{{cite web|url=http://www.ecology.info/tiger-leopard.htm|title=Sympatric Tiger and Leopard: How two big cats coexist in the same area}}{{dead link|date=December 2010}} Ecology.info</ref> With relatively abundant prey, tigers and leopards were seen to successfully coexist without competitive exclusion or inter-species dominance hierarchies that may be more common to the savanna.<ref>{{cite journal|last =Karanth|first =K. Ullas|coauthors = Sunquist, Melvin E.|year =2000| title = Behavioural correlates of predation by tiger (''Panthera tigris''), leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and dhole (''Cuon alpinus'') in Nagarahole, India| journal = Journal of Zoology|volume =250|pages =255–265|accessdate = 2008-06-05| doi = 10.1111/j.1469-7998.2000.tb01076.x|ref =harv}}</ref> Tigers have been known to suppress [[Gray Wolf|wolf]] populations in areas where the two species coexist.<ref name="IUCN-Reuters">{{cite web|url = http://www.iucn.org/reuters/2000/eeurope.html|title = The IUCN-Reuters Media Awards 2000|publisher = [[World Conservation Union|IUCN]]|accessdate = 2007-08-17 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060209182238/http://www.iucn.org/reuters/2000/eeurope.html |archivedate = February 9, 2006}}</ref><ref name="savethetiger">{{cite web|url = http://www.savethetigerfund.org/Content/NavigationMenu2/Community/GeneralPublic/TigerSubspecies/AmurSiberianTigers/default.htm|title = Amur Tiger|publisher = Save The Tiger Fund|accessdate = 2007-08-17 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070712180823/http://www.savethetigerfund.org/Content/NavigationMenu2/Community/GeneralPublic/TigerSubspecies/AmurSiberianTigers/default.htm |archivedate = July 12, 2007}}</ref> [[Dhole]] packs have been observed to attack and kill tigers in disputes over food, though not usually without heavy losses.<ref name="DHOLE">{{cite book|author = Mills, Stephen| title = Tiger|year = 2004|page = 168|isbn = 1552979490|publisher = Firefly Books|location = Richmond Hill., Ont.}}</ref> Lone [[golden jackal]]s expelled from their pack have been known to form [[Commensalism|commensal relationship]]s with tigers. These solitary jackals, known as ''kol-bahl'', will attach themselves to a particular tiger, trailing it at a safe distance in order to feed on the big cat's kills. A ''kol-bahl'' will even alert a tiger to a kill with a loud ''pheal''. Tigers have been known to tolerate these jackals: one report describes how a jackal confidently walked in and out between three tigers walking together a few feet away from each other.<ref name="perry">{{cite book|last = Perry|first = Richard|title = The World of the Tiger|year = 1965|page = 260|id = {{ASIN|B0007DU2IU}}|isbn = 0897472306}}</ref> [[Siberian tiger]]s and [[brown bear]]s can be competitors and usually avoid confrontation; however, tigers will kill bear cubs and even some adults on occasion. Bears ([[Asiatic black bear]]s and brown bears) make up 5–8% of the tiger's diet in the [[Russian Far East]].<ref name = "der-tiger"/> There are also a few records of brown bears killing tigers, either in self defense or in disputes over kills.<ref name="USSR">{{cite book|author = V.G. Heptner & A.A. Sludskii|title = Mammals of the Soviet Union, Volume II, Part 2|year = 1992| page =177|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=UxWZ-OmTqVoC&pg=PA177|isbn = 9004088768|publisher = Brill|location = Leiden}}</ref> Some bears emerging from hibernation will try to steal tigers' kills, although the tiger will sometimes defend its kill. [[Sloth bear]]s are quite aggressive and will sometimes drive young tigers away from their kills, although it is more common for Bengal tigers to prey on sloth bears.<ref name="der-tiger">Vratislav Mazak: ''Der Tiger''. Nachdruck der 3. Auflage von 1983. Westarp Wissenschaften Hohenwarsleben, 2004 ISBN 3-89432-759-6</ref>

==Conservation efforts==
{{Details|Tiger hunting}}
[[Poaching]] for fur and destruction of [[habitat]] have greatly reduced tiger populations in the wild. At the start of the 20th century, it is estimated there were over 100,000 tigers in the world but the population has dwindled to between 1,500 and 3,500 in the wild.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bigcatrescue.org/cats/wild/tiger.htm |title=Tiger |publisher=Big Cat Rescue |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> Some estimates suggest that there are less than 2,500 mature breeding individuals, with no subpopulation containing more than 250 mature breeding individuals.<ref name="IUCN">{{IUCN2006|assessors=Cat Specialist Group|year=2002|id=15955|title=Panthera Tigris|downloaded=10 May 2006}} Database entry includes justification for why this species is endangered.</ref>

===India===
[[File:Tiger in South India.jpg|thumb|A Bengal tiger in a national park in [[southern India]]. Indian officials successfully reintroduced two Bengal tigers in the [[Sariska Tiger Reserve]] in July 2008.<ref>[http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-3198240,prtpage-1.cms Tigress joins lone tiger in Sariska], Times of India, 4 July 2008.</ref>]]
{{Main|Project Tiger}}
India is home to the world's largest population of tigers in the wild.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://books.google.com/?id=DPP7O3nb3g0C&pg=PA153&dq=india+tiger+largest |title=Students' Britannica India – By Dale Hoiberg, Indu Ramchandani |publisher=Books.google.com |accessdate=2010-06-10|isbn=9780852297605|year=2000}}</ref> According to the [[World Wildlife Fund]], of the 3,500 tigers around the world, 1,400 are found in India. Only 11% of original Indian tiger habitat remains, and it is becoming significantly fragmented and often degraded.<ref>{{cite web|author=Independent Online |url=http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?sf=143&set_id=1&click_id=31&art_id=nw20080312141948377C153394 |title='World tiger population shrinking fast' |publisher=Iol.co.za |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref><ref>[http://panthera.org/scientific_publications.html Dinerstein, E., Loucks, C., Heydlauff, A., Wikramanayake, E., Bryja, G., Forrest, J., Ginsberg, J., Klenzendorf, S., Leimgruber, P., O'Brien, T., Sanderson, E., Seidensticker, J., and Songer, M. Setting Priorities for the Conservation and Recovery of Wild Tigers: 2005–2015. A User's Guide. 1–50. 2006. Washington, D.C. – New York, WWF, WCS, Smithsonian, and NFWF-STF.]{{dead link|date=December 2010}}</ref>

A major concerted conservation effort, known as ''Project Tiger'', has been underway since 1973, initially spearheaded by [[Indira Gandhi]]. The fundamental accomplishment has been the establishment of over 25 well-monitored tiger reserves in reclaimed land where human development is categorically forbidden. The program has been credited with tripling the number of wild Bengal tigers from roughly 1,200 in 1973 to over 3,500 in the 1990s. However, a tiger census carried out in 2007, whose report was published on February 12, 2008, stated that the wild tiger population in India declined by 60% to approximately 1,411.<ref>[http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23366394-5006506,00.html Only 3500 tigers left worldwide – WWF]{{dead link|date=June 2010}}</ref> It is noted in the report that the decrease of tiger population can be attributed directly to poaching.<ref name = "Over half of tigers lost in 5 years: census">{{cite web|url=http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/13/stories/2008021357240100.htm |title=Front Page : Over half of tigers lost in 5 years: census |publisher=The Hindu |date=2008-02-13 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref>

Following the release of the report, the Indian government pledged $153 million to further fund the [[Project Tiger]] initiative, set-up a Tiger Protection Force to combat poachers, and fund the relocation of up to 200,000 villagers to minimise human-tiger interaction.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4272945.ece|work=The Times|location=London|title=Tigers flown by helicopter to Sariska reserve to lift numbers in western India|first=Jeremy|last=Page|date=2008-07-05|accessdate=2010-05-25}}</ref> Additionally, eight new [[tiger reserves in India]] are being set up.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/02/080213-AP-india-disap.html |title=India Reports Sharp Decline in Wild Tigers |publisher=News.nationalgeographic.com |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> Indian officials successfully started a project to reintroduce the tigers into the [[Sariska Tiger Reserve]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Earth/Its-the-tale-of-a-tiger-two-tigresses-in-wilds-of-Sariska/rssarticleshow/4212845.cms |title=It's the tale of a tiger, two tigresses in wilds of Sariska |publisher=Economictimes.indiatimes.com |date=2009-03-02 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> The [[Ranthambore National Park]] is often cited as a major success by Indian officials against poaching.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/11/stories/2009031152382000.htm |title=Tigers galore in Ranthambhore National Park |publisher=Hindu.com |date=2009-03-11 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref>

''Tigers Forever'' is a collaboration between the [[Wildlife Conservation Society]] and [[Panthera Corporation]] to serve as both a science-based action plan and a business model to ensure that tigers live in the wild forever. Initial field sites of ''Tigers Forever'' include the world’s largest tiger reserve, the 21,756&nbsp;km² Hukaung Valley in Myanmar, the Western Ghats in India, Thailand’s Huai Khai Khaeng-Thung Yai protected areas, and other sites in Laos PDR, Cambodia, the Russian Far East and China covering approximately 260,000 km2 of critical tiger habitat.<ref name="Gubi, S 2007"/><ref>[http://panthera.org/scientific_publications.html Rabinowitz, A. 2009. Stop the bleeding: implementing a strategic Tiger Conservation Protocol. Cat News 51:30–31.]{{dead link|date=December 2010}}</ref>

===Russia===
[[File:1990tiger.svg|thumb|526px|Tiger headcount in 1990]]
The Siberian tiger was on the brink of extinction with only about 40 animals in the wild in the 1940s. Under the [[Soviet Union]], anti-poaching controls were strict and a network of protected zones ([[zapovednik]]s) were instituted, leading to a rise in the population to several hundred. Poaching again became a problem in the 1990s, when the [[economy of Russia]] collapsed, local hunters had access to a formerly sealed off lucrative Chinese market, and logging in the region increased. While an improvement in the local economy has led to greater resources being invested in conservation efforts, an increase of economic activity has led to an increased rate of development and deforestation. The major obstacle in preserving the species is the enormous territory individual tigers require (up to 450&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> needed by a single female and more for a single male).<ref name=WWF/><ref>[http://panthera.org/scientific_publications.htmlGoodrich J.M., D.G. Miquelle, E.M. Smirnov, L.L. Kerley, H.B. Quigley, and M.G. Hornocker. 2010. Spatial structure of Amur (Siberian) tigers (Panthera tigris altaica) on Sikhote-Alin Biosphere Zapovednik, Russia. Journal of Mammalogy, 91(3), 737–748.]{{dead link|date=December 2010}}</ref> Current conservation efforts are led by local governments and [[NGO]]'s in consort with international organisations, such as the [[World Wide Fund]] and the [[Wildlife Conservation Society]].<ref name=WWF>{{cite web
|title = WWF: Amur (Siberian) tiger – species factsheet
|url = http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/species/about_species/species_factsheets/tigers/amur_tiger/index.cfm
|accessdate = 2007-12-19}}</ref> The competitive exclusion of wolves by tigers has been used by Russian conservationists to convince hunters in the Far East to tolerate the big cats, as they limit ungulate populations less than wolves, and are effective in controlling the latter's numbers.<ref>Timothy E. Fulbright, David G. Hewitt ''Wildlife Science: Linking Ecological Theory and Management Applications'', [[CRC Press]], 2007, ISBN 0-8493-7487-1</ref> Currently, there are about 400–550 animals in the wild.

===Tibet===
The trade in tiger skins is illegal in the [[People's Republic of China]], of which [[Tibet Autonomous Region|Tibet]] is a part. However, the law banning the trade in [[endangered animal]] parts is not enforced in Tibet. An undercover investigation in 2000 by the [[Wildlife Protection Society of India]] produced much news about the tiger skin trade and pictures of [[Tibetan people|Tibetans]] wearing tiger skins. The tigers poached for their skins, subsequent investigations found, originated in India, in a "highly sophisticated" smuggling operation that crossed through [[Nepal]], that "had less to do with old customs than new money" and even attracted European tourists for the tiger skin products of [[Lhasa]]. When in 2005, officials in Tibet intercepted "32 tiger, 579 leopard and 665 otter skins", the [[14th Dalai Lama]] called on [[Tibetan diaspora|exiled Tibetans]], who are involved in the trade, to cease their activity.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dalai Lama campaigns for wildlife |publisher=BBC News |date=April 6, 2005 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4415929.stm |accessdate=2007-07-20}}</ref> The 14th Dalai Lama had spoken out about wearing furs before, but he repeated his condemnation during the 2006 [[Kalachakra]] festival in India to [[expatriate]] Tibetans.<ref>{{cite web |author=Justin Huggler |title=Fur flies over tiger plight |work=New Zealand Herald |publisher=Tibet.com |date=February 18, 2006 |url=http://www.tibet.com/NewsRoom/animalright2.htm |accessdate=2007-07-20 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070714113644/http://www.tibet.com/NewsRoom/animalright2.htm |archivedate = July 14, 2007}}</ref> Afterwards, the Dalai Lama issued a press release claiming to have received video of Tibetans burning their [[chuba|animal skin coats]], and reports of arrests of eight Tibetans involved for conspiring with the Dalai Lama's government.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.dalailama.com/news/post/27-animal-skin-clothes-burned-in-tibet-after-dalai-lamas-call|title=Animal Skin Clothes Burned In Tibet After Dalai Lamas Call|date=2006-02-17|accessdate=2010-12-04|publisher=The Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama}}</ref>

===Rewilding===
==Origin==
{{Refimprove|section|date=July 2009}}
Although the term "rewilding" was used in [[Conservation (ethic)|conservation]] in other contexts since at least 1990,<ref>Jennifer Foote, "Trying to Take Back the Planet," ''Newsweek'', 5 February 1990, pp. 24-25</ref> it was first applied to the restoration of a single species of carnivores by conservationist and ex-carnivore manager of [[Pilanesberg National Park]], Gus Van Dyk in 2003. In an effort to find the most appropriate translation of the Chinese term “野化” Van Dyk chose to adopt the term "rewilding" to describe the [[Save China's Tigers]] rewilding project of the [[South China Tiger]].<ref>[http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/270 Rare South China cubs head for South Africa, September 1st 2003 | Save China's Tigers]</ref>

[[File:Stud 327 with Blesbuck.jpg|right|thumb|A South China tiger of the [[Save China's Tigers]] project with his [[blesbuck]] kill]]
The first attempt at [[Rewilding (conservation biology)|rewilding]] was by Indian conservationist [[Billy Arjan Singh]], who reared a zoo-born tigress named Tara, and released her in the wilds of [[Dudhwa National Park]] in 1978. This was soon followed by a large number of people being eaten by a tigress who was later shot. Government officials claim that this tigress was Tara, an assertion hotly contested by Singh and conservationists. Later on, this rewilding gained further disrepute when it was found that the local [[gene pool]] had been sullied by Tara's introduction as she was partly Siberian tiger, a fact not known at the time of release, ostensibly due to poor record-keeping at [[Twycross Zoo]], where she had been raised.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19981119/32350524.html |title=Indian tiger isn't 100% “swadeshi (Made in India)”; by Pallava Bagla; Indian Express Newspaper; November 19, 1998 |publisher=Indianexpress.com |date=1998-11-19 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.india-today.com/itoday/17111997/wild.html |title=Tainted Royalty, Wildlife: Royal Bengal Tiger, a controversy arises over the purity of the Indian tiger after DNA samples show Siberian tiger genes. By Subhadra Menon. India Today, November 17, 1997 |publisher=India-today.com |date=1997-11-17 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/tara4.html |title=The Tale of Tara, 4: Tara's Heritage from Tiger Territory website |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |date=1999-11-22 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/bengal.html |title=Genetic pollution in wild Bengal tigers, Tiger Territory website |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sanctuaryasia.com/interviews/bilarjsingh.php |title=Interview with Billy Arjan Singh: Dudhwa's Tiger man, October 2000, Sanctuary Asia Magazine |publisher=Sanctuaryasia.com |date=1917-08-15 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iisc.ernet.in/~currsci/nov10/articles18.htm |title=Mitochondrial DNA sequence divergence among big cats and their hybrids by Pattabhiraman Shankaranarayanan* and Lalji Singh*, *Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderabad 500 007, India, Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, CCMB Campus, Uppal Road, Hyderabad 500 007, India |publisher=Iisc.ernet.in |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cza.nic.in/research1.html |title=Central Zoo Authority of India (CZA), Government of India |publisher=CZA |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol278/issue5339/r-samples.dtl#278/5339/807b |title="Indians Look At Their Big Cats' Genes", Science, Random Samples, Volume 278, Number 5339, Issue of 31 October 1997, 278: 807 (DOI: 10.1126/science.278.5339.807b) (in Random Samples),The American Association for the Advancement of Science |publisher=Sciencemag.org |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fatheroflions.org/ArjanSingh.html |title=BOOKS By & About Billy Arjan Singh |publisher=Fatheroflions.org |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vedamsbooks.com/no32235.htm |title=Book – Tara: The Cocktail Tigress/Ram Lakhan Singh. Edited by Rahul Karmakar. Allahabad, Print World, 2000, xxxviii, 108 p., ills., $22. ISBN 81-7738-000-1. A book criticizing Billy Arjan Singh's release of hand reared hybrid Tigress Tara in the wild at Dudhwa National Park in India |publisher=Vedamsbooks.com |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref>

====Save China's Tigers====
{{Main| Save China's Tigers}}
The organisation Save China's Tigers, working with the Wildlife Research Centre of the State Forestry Administration of China and the Chinese Tigers South Africa Trust, secured an agreement on the reintroduction of Chinese tigers into the wild. The agreement, which was signed in [[Beijing]] on 26 November 2002, calls for the establishment of a Chinese tiger [[Conservation biology|conservation]] model through the creation of a pilot reserve in China where indigenous wildlife, including the South China Tiger, will be reintroduced. Save China's Tigers aims to rewild the critically endangered [[South China Tiger]] by bringing a few captive-bred individuals to South Africa for rehabilitation training for them to regain their hunting instincts. At the same time, a pilot reserve in China is being set-up and the Tigers will be relocated and release back in China when the reserve in China is ready.<ref name="english.savechinastigers.org">{{cite web|url=http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/255 |title=FAQs &#124; Save China's Tigers |publisher=English.savechinastigers.org |date=2004-07-25 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref> The offspring of the trained tigers will be released into the pilot reserves in China, while the original animals will stay in [[South Africa]] to continue breeding.<ref name="FAQs|Save China's Tigers">{{cite web|url=http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/255#14 |title=FAQs &#124; Save China's Tigers |publisher=English.savechinastigers.org |date=2004-07-25 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref>

South Africa was chosen as a springboard thanks to its leadership in wildlife management, readily available land, and abundant [[prey|game]]SCT has also been working with the Chinese government to identify suitable for the establishment of pilot reserves in China. The [[South China Tiger]]s of the project has since been successfully rewilded and are fully capable of hunting and surviving on their own.<ref name="english.savechinastigers.org"/> This project is also very successful in the breeding of these rewilded South China Tigers and 5 cubs have been born in the project, these cubs of the 2nd generation would be able to learn their survival skills from their successfully rewilded mothers directly.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAnmxhTd1OA |title=The Baby Tiger That's Beating Extinction &#124; Youtube Channel-SkyNews |publisher=Youtube.com |date=2007-12-04 |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref>

It is hoped that in 2010, the Chinese year of the Tiger, the first batch of rewilded South China Tigers can be sent back to China from South Africa, and be released into the wild.<ref>{{cite web|author=James Pomfret |url=http://www.connect-services.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61B12R20100212 |title=Clock ticks for South China tigers in symbolic year &#124; Reuters News |publisher=Connect-services.reuters.com |accessdate=2010-06-10}}</ref>

===Success story of rewilding===
[[File:Tigerwoods chasing blesbucks.jpg|thumb|right|A rewilded South China Tiger of the [[Save China's Tigers]] rewilding project hunting [[blesbuck]]]]
Save China's Tigers' South China Tiger rewilding and reintroduction project has been deemed a success. Recently, renown [[scientist]]s have confirmed the role of Rewilding captive populations to save the South China Tiger. A rewilding workshop conducted in the October of 2010, in Laohu Valley reserve, [[South Africa]] to access the progress of the rewilding and reintroduction program of Save China's Tigers. The experts present includes Dr. Peter Crawshaw of Centro Nacional de Pesquisa e Conservacão de Mamiferos Carnivoros, Cenap/ICMBIO, Dr. Gary Koehler, Dr. Laurie Marker of Cheetah Conservation Fund, Dr. Jim Sanderson of Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation, Dr. Nobuyuki Yamaguchi of Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences of Qatar University, and Dr. David Smith of [[Minnesota University]], Chinese government scientists as well as representatives of Save China's Tigers.

The tigers involved, were born in captive conditions, in concrete cages and their parents are all captive animals who are unable to sustain in the wild. They were sent to South Africa as part of the Save China's Tigers project to rewilding and ensure that they regain the necessary skills needed for a predator to survive in the wild.

Results of the workshop confirmed the important role of the South China Tiger Rewilding Project in tiger conservation. ““Having seen the tigers hunting in an open environment at Laohu Valley Reserve, I believe that these rewilded tigers have the skill to hunt in any environment.” Dr. David Smith remarked. Furthermore, Save China's Tigers recovered natural habitat both in China and in South Africa during their attempt to reintroduce [[South China Tigers]] back into the wild.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/572 |title=Scientists Confirm the Role of Rewilding Captive Populations to Save the South China Tiger |publisher=English.savechinastigers.org |date= |accessdate=2010-12-12}}</ref>

The goal is of preparing tigers born in captivity for introduction to wild habitat in China where tigers once lived seems to be very possible in the near future based on the success of the rewilding and reintroduction program.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/203605/Tiger-cubs-saved-by-Catwoman |title=Tiger cubs saved by catwoman |publisher=Express.co.uk |date=2010-10-05 |accessdate=2010-12-12}}</ref>

==Relation with humans==
===Tiger as prey===
{{Main|Tiger hunting}}
[[File:ElephantbackTigerHunt.jpg|thumb|right|Tiger hunting on elephant-back, India, 1808.]]
The tiger has been one of the [[Big Five game]] animals of [[Asia]]. Tiger hunting took place on a large scale in the early nineteenth and twentieth centuries, being a recognised and admired sport by the [[United Kingdom|British]] in [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|colonial India]] as well as the maharajas and aristocratic class of the erstwhile princely states of pre-independence India. Tiger hunting was done by some hunters on foot; others sat up on ''[[machan]]s'' with a goat or buffalo tied out as bait; yet others on elephant-back.<ref name="Tiger-hunting">vide ''Royal Tiger'' (nom-de-plume) in ''The Manpoora Tiger – about a Tiger Hunt in Rajpootanah''. (1836) ''Bengal Sporting Magazine, Vol IV. reproduced in ''The Treasures of Indian Wildlife''</ref> In some cases, villagers beating drums were organised to drive the animals into the killing zone. Elaborate instructions were available for the skinning of tigers and there were taxidermists who specialised in the preparation of tiger skins.

===Man-eating tigers===
{{Main|Tiger attack}}
[[File:Maneater calcutta1903 stereoscopic.jpg|thumb|300px|Stereographic photograph (1903) of a captured man-eating tiger in the [[Calcutta]] zoo; the tiger had claimed 200 human victims.]]
Although humans are not regular prey for tigers, they have killed more people than any other cat, particularly in areas where population growth, logging, and farming have put pressure on tiger habitats. Most man-eating tigers are old and missing teeth, acquiring a taste for humans because of their inability to capture preferred prey.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/maneating.html |title=Man-eaters. The tiger and lion, attacks on humans |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> Almost all tigers that are identified as man-eaters are quickly captured, shot, or poisoned. Unlike man-eating leopards, even established man-eating tigers will seldom enter human settlements, usually remaining at village outskirts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/maneating3.html |title=Man-eaters. The tiger and lion, attacks on humans |publisher=Lairweb.org.nz |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> Nevertheless, attacks in human villages do occur.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/increasing-tiger-attacks-trigger-panic-around-tadobaandhari-reserve/229533/ |title=Increasing tiger attacks trigger panic around Tadoba-Andhari reserve |publisher=Indianexpress.com |date=2007-10-18 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> Man-eaters have been a particular problem in India and Bangladesh, especially in [[Kumaon division|Kumaon]], [[Garhwal division|Garhwal]] and the [[Sundarbans]] mangrove swamps of [[Bengal]], where some healthy tigers have been known to hunt humans. Because of rapid habitat loss due to [[climate change]], tiger attacks have increased in the Sundarbans.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.enn.com/wildlife/article/38442| title=Climate change linked to Indian tiger attacks| accessdate=27 October 2008}}</ref>

A female tiger [[San Francisco Zoo tiger attacks|Tatiana]] escaped from her enclosure in the San Francisco Zoo, killing one person and seriously injuring two more before being shot and killed by the police. The enclosure had walls that were lower than they were legally required to be, allowing the tiger to climb the wall and escape.

===Traditional Asian medicine===
Many people in China have a belief that various tiger parts have medicinal properties, including as pain killers and [[aphrodisiac]]s.<ref>{{cite news|last=Harding |first=Andrew |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/5371500.stm |title=Programmes &#124; From Our Own Correspondent &#124; Beijing's penis emporium |publisher=BBC News |date=2006-09-23 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> There is no scientific evidence to support these beliefs. The use of tiger parts in pharmaceutical drugs in China is already banned, and the government has made some offenses in connection with tiger poaching punishable by death. Furthermore, all trade in tiger parts is illegal under the [[CITES|Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora]] and a domestic trade ban has been in place in China since 1993. Still, there are a number of [[tiger farm]]s in the country specialising in breeding the cats for profit. It is estimated that between 5,000 and 10,000 captive-bred, semi-tame animals live in these farms today.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwf.org.uk/news/n_0000003865.asp |title=Chinese tiger farms must be investigated |publisher=WWF |accessdate=2009-03-07}}{{dead link|date=January 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/where_we_work/asia_pacific/where/bhutan/index.cfm?uNewsID=106740 |title=WWF: Breeding tigers for trade soundly rejected at cites |publisher=Panda.org |accessdate=2009-03-07}}{{dead link|date=January 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8487122.stm|title=Tigers and other farmyard animals |last=Jackson|first=Patrick|date=29 January 2010|work=BBC News|accessdate=29 January 2010}}</ref>

===As pets===
The [[Association of Zoos and Aquariums]] estimates that up to 12,000 tigers are being kept as private pets in the US, significantly more than the world's entire wild population, 4,000 are believed to be in captivity in [[Texas]] alone.<ref name=tami/>
Part of the reason for America's enormous tiger population relates to legislation. Only nineteen states have banned private ownership of tigers, fifteen require only a license, and sixteen states have no regulations at all.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bornfreeusa.org/b4a2_exotic_animals_summary.php |title=Summary of State Laws Relating to Private Possession of Exotic Animals |publisher=Bornfreeusa.org |date= |accessdate=2010-12-12}}</ref>
The success of breeding programmes at American zoos and circuses led to an overabundance of cubs in the 1980s and 1990s, which drove down prices for the animals. The [[Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Texas|SPCA]] estimate there are now 500 lions, tigers and other big cats in private ownership just in the [[Houston, Texas|Houston]] area.<ref name=tami>[http://tamizhatamizha.com/relation.html Tiger], Tamizhatamizha.com</ref>

===Cultural depictions===
[[File:Kuniyoshi Utagawa, Tiger.jpg|thumb|right|upright|19th century painting of a tiger by [[Kuniyoshi Utagawa]].]]
The tiger replaces the lion as King of the Beasts in cultures of eastern Asia,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/316 |title=Tiger Culture &#124; Save China's Tigers |publisher=English.savechinastigers.org |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref> representing royalty, fearlessness and wrath.<ref name = "Cooper92">{{cite book |last=Cooper |first=JC |title=Symbolic and Mythological Animals |pages=226–27 |year=1992 |publisher= Aquarian Press |location=London |isbn=1-85538-118-4}}</ref> Its forehead has a marking which resembles the Chinese character 王, which means "king"; consequently, many cartoon depictions of tigers in China and Korea are drawn with 王 on their forehead.{{Citation needed|date=October 2007}}

Of great importance in Chinese myth and culture, the [[Tiger (zodiac)|tiger]] is one of the 12 [[Chinese astrology|Chinese zodiac]] animals. Also in various [[Chinese art]] and martial art, the tiger is depicted as an earth symbol and equal rival of the [[Chinese dragon]]- the two representing matter and spirit respectively. In fact, the Southern Chinese martial art [[Hung Ga]] is based on the movements of the Tiger and the Crane. In [[History of China|Imperial China]], a tiger was the personification of war and often represented the highest army [[General Officer|general]] (or present day [[United States Secretary of Defense|defense secretary]]),<ref name = "Cooper92"/> while the emperor and empress were represented by a [[dragon]] and [[Fenghuang|phoenix]], respectively. The [[White Tiger (Chinese constellation)|White Tiger]] ({{zh|c=白虎|p=Bái Hǔ}}) is one of the [[Four Symbols (Chinese constellation)|Four Symbols]] of the [[Chinese constellation]]s. It is sometimes called the White Tiger of the West (西方白虎), and it represents the [[west]] and the autumn season.<ref name = "Cooper92"/>

In Buddhism, it is also one of the Three Senseless Creatures, symbolising anger, with the monkey representing greed and the deer lovesickness.<ref name = "Cooper92">{{cite book |last=Cooper |first=JC |title=Symbolic and Mythological Animals |pages=161–62 |year=1992 |publisher= Aquarian Press |location=London |isbn=1-85538-118-4}}</ref>

[[File:Durga Mahisasuramardini.JPG|thumb|left|Goddess Durga riding a tiger]]
The [[Tungusic people]] considered the Siberian tiger a near-deity and often referred to it as "Grandfather" or "Old man". The [[Udege people|Udege]] and [[Nanai]] called it "Amba". The [[Manchu]] considered the Siberian tiger as Hu Lin, the king.<ref name="Tigersnow">{{cite book|last = Matthiessen|first = Peter|coauthors = Hornocker, Maurice|year= 2001|title = Tigers In The Snow|publisher = North Point Press|isbn = 0865475962}}</ref>

The widely worshiped Hindu goddess [[Durga]], an aspect of [[Devi]]-[[Parvati]], is a ten-armed warrior who rides the tigress (or lioness) Damon into battle. In southern India the god [[Ayyappan]] was associated with a tiger.<ref>{{cite web|last = Balambal|first = V|title = 19. Religion – Identity – Human Values – Indian Context|work = Bioethics in India: Proceedings of the International Bioethics Workshop in Madras: Biomanagement of Biogeoresources, 16–19 January 1997|publisher = Eubios Ethics Institute |year=1997|url = http://www.eubios.info/india/BII19.HTM|accessdate = 2007-10-08}}</ref>

The [[Werecat|weretiger]] replaces the [[werewolf]] in [[shapeshifting]] folklore in Asia;<ref name="summers66">
{{cite book| last = Summers| first = Montague|authorlink = Montague Summers| title = The Werewolf
|publisher = University Books|year=1966|page = 21| isbn = 0517180936}}</ref> in India they were evil sorcerers while in Indonesia and Malaysia they were somewhat more benign.<ref name="javaweretigerstuff">
{{cite book|title = Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition
|date=1910–1911}}
</ref>

The tiger continues to be a subject in literature; both [[Rudyard Kipling]], in ''[[The Jungle Book]]'', and [[William Blake]], in ''[[Songs of Innocence and of Experience#Songs of Experience|Songs of Experience]]'', depict the tiger as a menacing and fearful animal. In ''The Jungle Book'', the tiger, [[Shere Khan]], is the wicked mortal enemy of the protagonist, [[Mowgli]]. However, other depictions are more benign: [[Tigger]], the tiger from [[A. A. Milne]]'s [[Winnie-the-Pooh]] stories, is cuddly and likable. In the [[Man Booker Prize]] winning [[novel]] "[[Life of Pi]]", the protagonist, Pi Patel, sole human survivor of a ship wreck in the [[Pacific Ocean]], befriends another survivor: a large [[Bengal Tiger]]. The famous comic strip ''[[Calvin and Hobbes]]'' features Calvin and his stuffed tiger, Hobbes. A tiger is also featured on the cover of the popular cereal [[Frosted Flakes]] (also marketed as "Frosties") bearing the name "[[Tony the Tiger]]".

The Tiger is the national animal of [[Bangladesh]], [[Nepal]], [[India]]<ref>[http://india.gov.in/knowindia/national_animal.php National Animal] ''Panthera tigris'', Tiger is the [[national animal]] of [[India]] [[Govt. of India]] website,</ref> (Bengal Tiger), [[Malaysia]] (Malayan Tiger), [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]] (Siberian Tiger).

===World's favourite animal===
In a poll conducted by [[Animal Planet]], the tiger was voted the world's favourite animal, narrowly beating the [[dog]]. More than 50,000 viewers from 73 countries voted in the poll. Tigers received 21% of the vote, dogs 20%, [[dolphin]]s 13%, [[horse]]s 10%, [[lion]]s 9%, [[snake]]s 8%, followed by [[elephant]]s, [[chimpanzee]]s, [[orangutan]]s and [[whale]]s.<ref name="int.iol.co.za">{{cite web|author=Independent Online |url=http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?newslett=1&em=28164a99a20041206ah&click_id=29&art_id=qw1102325040750B216&set_id=1 |title=Tiger tops dog as world's favourite animal |publisher=Int.iol.co.za |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>[http://www.pers.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=197&Itemid=50 Pers – The Tiger is the World's Favorite Animal]{{dead link|date=June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_4070000/newsid_4073100/4073151.stm |title=CBBC Newsround &#124; Animals &#124; Tiger 'is our favourite animal' |publisher=BBC News |date=2004-12-06 |accessdate=2009-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20041206/ai_n12814678 |title=Endangered tiger earns its stripes as the world's most popular beast &#124; Independent, The (London) &#124; Find Articles at BNET.com |publisher=Findarticles.com |date=2004-12-06 |accessdate=2009-03-07 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080120222416/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20041206/ai_n12814678 |archivedate = January 20, 2008}}</ref>

Animal behaviourist Candy d'Sa, who worked with Animal Planet on the list, said: "We can relate to the tiger, as it is fierce and commanding on the outside, but noble and discerning on the inside".<ref name="int.iol.co.za" />

Callum Rankine, international species officer at the World Wildlife Federation conservation charity, said the result gave him hope. "If people are voting tigers as their favourite animal, it means they recognise their importance, and hopefully the need to ensure their survival," he said.<ref name="int.iol.co.za" />

==See also==
*[[21st Century Tiger]], information about tigers and conservation projects
*[[Endangered subspecies of tiger]]
* [[List of solitary animals]]
*[[Panthera Corporation]], big cat conservation organization
*[[Siegfried & Roy]], two famous tamers of tigers
*[[Tiger in Chinese culture]]
*[[Tiger penis]]
*[[Tiger Temple]], a Buddhist temple in Thailand famous for its tame tigers

==Cited references==
{{Reflist|2}}

==References==
*{{aut|Brakefield, T.}} (1993). <cite>Big cats kingdom of might</cite>, Voyageur press.
*{{aut|Dr. Tony Hare}}. (2001) ''Animal Habitats'' P. 172 ISBN 0-8160-4594-1
*{{aut|Kothari, Ashok S.}} & {{aut|Chhapgar, Boman F.}} (eds). 2005. ''The Treasures of Indian Wildlife''. Bombay Natural History Society and Oxford University Press, Mumbai.
*{{aut|[[Vratislav Mazák|Mazák, V]].}} (1981). [http://www.science.smith.edu/departments/Biology/VHAYSSEN/msi/pdf/i0076-3519-152-01-0001.pdf Panthera tigris.] (PDF). Mammalian Species, 152: 1–8. American Society of Mammalogists.
*{{aut|Nowak, Ronald M.}} (1999) ''Walker's Mammals of the World''. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-5789-9
*{{Cite document
|surname = Sankhala
|given = K.
|year = 1997
|title = Der indische Tiger und sein Reich
|publisher = Bechtermuenz Verlag
|id = ISBN 3-86047-734-X
|ref = harv}} Abridged German translation of ''Return of the Tiger'', Lustre Press, 1993.
*{{aut|Seidensticker, John}}. (1999) ''Riding the Tiger. Tiger Conservation in Human-dominated Landscapes '' Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-64835-1

==External links==
{{Commons category|Panthera tigris}}
{{Wikispecies|Panthera tigris}}
*[http://truthabouttigers.org/ Truth about Tigers]: Website with a lot of answers to the conservation issues faced by tigers
*[http://www.21stcenturytiger.org/ 21st Century Tiger]: information about tigers and conservation projects
*[http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/name/Panthera_tigris Biodiversity Heritage Library bibliography] for ''Panthera tigris''
*[http://www.savethetigerfund.org/ Save The Tiger Fund]: Program of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
*[http://www.jvbigcats.co.za/ Tiger Canyons Homepage]: information about tigers and the Crossbred Tiger Rewilding project
*[http://www.tigersincrisis.com/ Tigers in Crisis]: Information about Earth's Endangered Tigers
*[http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/species/about_species/species_factsheets/tigers/index.cfm WWF – Tigers]
*[http://www.stampsbook.org/subject/Tiger.html Tiger Stamps]: Tiger images on postage stamps from many different countries.
*[http://english.savechinastigers.org/ Save China's Tigers]: information about tigers and the South China Tiger rewilding project in Africa
*[http://www.sundarbanstigerproject.info/ Sundarbans Tiger Project]: research and conservation of tigers in the largest remaining mangrove forest in the world
*[http://www.tigerfriends.com/ Explore T.I.G.E.R.S]: The Institute of Greatly Endangered and Rare Species
*[http://www.eia-international.org/campaigns/species/tigers/ EIA tiger campaign]: 15 years investigating the tiger trade, reports etc.
*[http://www.eia-global.org/species_in_peril/ EIA in the USA]: reports etc.
*[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1964894-1,00.html Tale of the Cat]; Mar. 01, 2010; By Andrew Marshall; [[TIME Magazine]] (in partnership with [[CNN]])
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/collections/p0063wt7 BBC Year of the tiger]: A video collection from the BBC highlighting the plight of the Tiger. Produced in celebration of the 2010 Year of the Tiger.
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/species/Tiger Watch more tiger (Panthera tigris) video clips from the BBC archive on Wildlife Finder]
{{Carnivora|Fe.}}

[[Category:Tigers| ]]
[[Category:Animals described in 1758]]
[[Category:Big cats of India]]
[[Category:Conservation reliant species]]
[[Category:EDGE Species]]
[[Category:Mammals of Asia]]
[[Category:Mammals of Indonesia]]
[[Category:Mammals of Russia]]
[[Category:Megafauna of Eurasia]]
[[Category:National symbols of India]]
[[Category:National symbols of Malaysia]]
[[Category:National symbols of Singapore]]
[[Category:Carnivora of Malaysia]]

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Revision as of 14:27, 14 February 2011

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