Siberian Tiger Facts
CONSERVATION STATUS:
ENDANGERED
Fun Facts!
*Tigers are the largest cats in the world. There are only around 500 Siberian or Amur Tigers left in the wild.
*No two tigers have the same stripe pattern. It’s like a human fingerprint.
*Tigers can eat up to 60 pounds of meat at a time.
*Siberian tigers have manes unlike other types of tigers.
*White tigers are due to a mutation. A white tiger can be any variety of tiger.
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Panthera tigris tigris
LIFE SPAN:
16 to 18 years in the wild
SIZE:
WEIGHT:
usually around 375 pounds, but they have been recorded up to 660 pounds
DIET:
Siberian tigers are apex predators, meaning that they are at the top of their food chain. They eat Siberian musk deer, moose, Siberian roe deer, wild boar, and other smaller animals. They have even killed brown and black bears. They eat mostly wild boar, roe deer, and sika deer.
PReDATORS:
Siberian tigers are apex predators, and so they do not have any natural predators. Siberian cubs may be killed by Amur leopards, but that is uncommon. The only predator that the Siberian tiger has is humans.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
The Siberian tiger has a mostly orange fur color with black stripes in between. The tiger’s underside in white with fading black stripes. Just like snowflakes or human fingertips, tigers have stripes that are unique to each tiger. Also known as the Amur tiger, the Siberian tiger is the largest cat in the world. It averages about 11 feet in length. The male and female tigers are different sizes; the males weigh up to 700 pounds while the females only weigh about 400 pounds. Siberian tigers have denser fur than other tigers, an adaptation to the cold climate of the russian tundra. Tigers have long tails and huge paws. Their bodies are very flexible which helps them stalk and pounce on their prey.
BEHAVIOR:
The Siberian tiger has one of the largest home ranges in the animal kingdom. The home range is the distance an animal can travel regularly in one lifetime. A Siberian tiger can regularly travel a home range of 1,000 kilometers. They are very solitary and territorial animals. They will live alone, except when female tigers have cubs. Siberian tigers have around 2-4 cubs per litter. They will keep their cubs for two to three years. They stalk their prey by hiding in the snow and shrubbery. They mainly use their keen senses of sight and sound to kill their prey.
THREATS:
Most of the threats that Siberian tigers face are human threats. Poaching is the illegal killing of animals for their meat, pelts, and bones. Siberian tigers are a very high priced animal on the black market, as traditional medicine uses the parts to treat many illnesses. It is illegal to kill the Siberian tigers, but deforestation also strands tigers by themselves, lowering the reproduction rates. In the 1930s, the Siberian tigers just had 30 tigers left in the wild. The numbers have risen, but the animal is still endangered.
How can you Help?
Learn all you can about the Tigers and spread the word to others.
Don’t buy tiger products such as tiger wine, tiger bones, etc.
Don’t support roadside zoos that offer tiger cub petting and pictures with tigers.
