Tigers are some of the world’s most famous animals, known for their iconic stripes and powerful roars. But there are so many things about tigers you may not know!
Individual tigers possess distinct stripes, which imprint themselves upon their skin much like fingerprints.
They’re the largest cat in the world
Tigers are one of the world’s most iconic animals, inspiring everything from songs and stories to logos, fashion and sports teams. As members of the cat family and capable apex predators able to take down prey as diverse as rodents to elephant calves, their numbers have steadily been declining due to human activities such as poaching. Unfortunately, due to human activities like these they now only inhabit a fraction of their former range.
Tigers may be known for being dangerous animals, but their true love lies in water environments like lakes and rivers; they spend hours lounging around ponds, rivers, lagoons, swamps or lakes and swimming long distances! Because of this affinity with water environments they can become adept hunters of aquatic prey such as fish.
One of the most intriguing tiger facts is their webbed toes, which make them excellent swimmers. Unlike domestic cats, tiger cubs are born blindfolded and must follow their mothers to hunt and survive – in nature this process usually lasts around two years compared with entertainment venues where cubs may be separated soon after birth.
Tigers use their saliva as an antiseptic to help heal injuries quickly. Furthermore, their unique stripes don’t just appear on their fur; they also cover their skin – this makes them very distinct; even if all its fur had been removed you would still be able to spot its stripes!
Although tigers are the most powerful member of the big cat family, they are not as fast or as strong as smaller cats. However, their enhanced senses make them extremely dangerous predators with a powerful roar that can be heard miles away; plus their vocalizations create infrasound frequencies which our ears cannot detect!
They’re not albino
One of the more widespread misconceptions about tigers is that they’re albinos. While their fur may appear white, their bodies don’t actually exhibit less pigment than usual due to a mutation that changes an amino acid from an alanine to valine in one gene affecting protein coloration in their skin – stopping melanin production, while leaving other pigmentation intact and giving tigers their signature stripes and eyes.
Tigers first appeared on Earth millions of years ago, and have since been around ever since. While their ancestors may have looked quite different from modern day counterparts, tigers still rank among the largest cats worldwide – an adult male can weigh up to 670 pounds while measuring over three metres long!
Tigers may be known for their strength and speed, but they’re also exceptional swimmers. Tigers don’t mind getting wet as they enter bodies of water to hunt prey or cool off from the heat; their partially webbed toes help them glide effortlessly through the water.
Tiger cubs in the wild usually stay with their mother until they’re around one and a half years old, during which time their size typically quadruples during this period of care. Although you’ll sometimes see multiple cubs sharing one cage together at once in zoos, in nature tiger cubs tend to live alone until adulthood sets in.
They’re not vegetarian
Tigers are obligate carnivores and must rely on meat as their main source of protein, with sharp teeth for tearing flesh, strong jaws for biting and chewing meat, and an digestive system designed specifically to process animal proteins as food sources. A wild tiger must kill and consume at least 20 square miles worth of meat annually in order to survive.
Tiger stripes serve as a form of camouflage to blend in with their surroundings and avoid predation, but also act as identification markings to identify other members of their species or individual cubs. No two tiger stripes are alike – even if shaved off completely, each will still show its individual markings.
Tigers can often be found roaming forests and grasslands, though they will also enter bodies of water to hunt or cool off during the heat of the day. Tigers are excellent swimmers and can dive up to 15 feet for hunting purposes.
As part of their hunting process, tiger cubs use scent to locate their mother after making kills and to find their way back home after they make kills. Furthermore, they will lick blood off of prey that may contain bacteria to remove it from their fur and skin. Their saliva contains lysozyme enzymes that kill bacteria naturally and act as natural antiseptics; however, their taste buds cannot recognize sweetness, so they cannot enjoy sweets or fruits like nectarines or cherries. Tigers in the wild typically provide care and feedings to their own cubs until they are old enough to hunt on their own, usually between 2 to 3 years of age. Female tigers take on this responsibility since male tigers will usually consume new cubs as quickly as they appear as competition for territory or mating opportunities with their mothers.
They’re nocturnal
Tigers are well known to prowl, hunt, and explore their vast territories at night. By day they prefer resting and sleeping to keep cool; wild tiger cubs typically spend two years being raised by their mothers before being separated shortly after birth in zoos and entertainment venues.
Tigers differ from most cats in that they’ve adapted to become crepuscular hunters – active at dawn and dusk hours – in order to better match up their hunting activities with those of their prey species, such as deer or wild boars which tend to be active at night. This gives tigers an edge as top predators within their ecosystems, helping ensure their continued existence as such.
Tigers possess extraordinary senses, being able to see six times better at night than humans thanks to their specially equipped eyes. Additionally, their loud roars allow them to hear farther at night than us; finally they possess a special gland which allows them to detect prey scent.
Tigers spend much of their non-hunting time patrolling their territory and resting in water holes to stay cool while also protecting them from biting flies. Tigers are capable swimmers, making them formidable predators in their natural habitats. As part of territorial marking behavior, tigers mark their territories with urine that has an inimitable buttered popcorn-scented scent to indicate when another tiger may be nearby.
They’re endangered
Tigers are one of nature’s most powerful big cats, yet they remain among the most endangered species in the wild. Their natural habitat is being threatened by human settlements and logging operations; and hunters hunt them for their fur, teeth, bones and meat as well as retaliatory killings after attacks on humans and livestock.
Tigers typically hunt alone and are known for killing prey with just a bite or swipe. They typically stalk their prey at night before pouncing upon it and grabbing its neck with their claws to secure its death. Tigers have been known to consume up to 80 pounds of meat per night before covering it to protect it from potential scavengers.
Tiger numbers in the wild have declined greatly over the past 100 years, with only about 4,000 remaining wild and even less in captivity (most kept at zoos or safari parks). Although breathtaking in their beauty and power, tigers do not make suitable pets as they require expert care, adequate space, diet and access. Many have even attacked owners or keepers; one study even concluded that most fatal attacks had to do with human interaction!
Tigers once lived throughout Asia in tropical forests, arid savannas, and cold coniferous forests – but their range has since shrunk due to human population growth and activities encroaching on their habitats. Poaching, habitat loss and diminishing food supplies have left only about four percent of their former range left – although Siberian Russia may provide hope as they make a comeback.