Tiger (Panthera tigris)
Tigers are the largest of all the big cats. This magnificent animal is a heavily muscled and powerful predator that employs stalk and ambush tactics to bring down large prey, using the characteristic stripy coat as camouflage. Unlike other cats, tigers are good swimmers and often cool off in lakes and streams during the heat of the day. Sadly, they have been pushed to the edge of existance through hunting and habitat loss, with three of the eight subspecies already extinct, and the other subspecies at high risk.
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Lords of the land
The Life of Mammals
The planet's top predators and the ultimate in lethal grace and beauty.
In a career spanning over 50 years, David Attenborough has seen, filmed and commented on just about every kind of creature on the planet from the tiniest of invertebrates to the giants of land and sea. The majesty and sheer power of the Siberian tiger, once the top land predator, is put into sharp relief against its precarious status and restricted range.
Playful cubs
Tiger cubs
Land of the Tiger
A ruthlessly protective tigress calls her cubs out of hiding.
A ruthlessly protective tigress calls her cubs out of hiding.
Don't get distracted
Land of the Tiger
Chital deer are distracted by the rut and unaware of a tiger.
The breeding season has arrived for the chital deer. Stags become distracted by the thought of fighting and mating and a tiger takes the opportunity to stalk and make a charge.
Siberian tiger
Realms of the Russian Bear
Rarely seen, the Siberian tiger lives in the forests of Ussuriland.
In the 1940's only 25 individual Siberian tigers remained. Urgent protection has meant they still survive in this remote region, but they are extremely vulnerable and very elusive.
Ussuri tigers
Realms of the Russian Bear
One of the last strongholds of the world's largest living cat.
One of the last strongholds of the world's largest living cat.
Featured in the following TV programmes
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Archived
Land of the Tiger: THE TIGER'S DOMAIN
Valmik Thapar visits the Gir Forest and Kahna National Park in search of lions and tigers.
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Archived
The Life of Mammals: Meat Eaters
David Attenborough looks at carnivores, from arctic foxes to big cats.
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Archived
Realms of the Russian Bear: Born of Fire
Russia's Far East is home to a plethora of fauna, from sea eagles to Siberian tigers.
Earth News
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Tiger skin trade in China exposed
An undercover investigation by an environmental campaign group reveals the continuing trade in tiger skins in China.
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Poached skins matched to tigers
A new piece of software is able to identify individual tigers by the unique stripe patterns on their coats.
About the Tiger
The tiger (Panthera tigris) is a member of the Felidae family; the largest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera. Native to much of eastern and southern Asia, the tiger is an apex predator and an obligate carnivore. Reaching up to 3.3 metres (11 ft) in total length and weighing up to 300 kilograms (660 pounds), the larger tiger subspecies are comparable in size to the biggest extinct felids. Aside from their great bulk and power, their most recognisable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes that overlays near-white to reddish-orange fur, with lighter underparts. The most numerous tiger subspecies is the Bengal tiger while the largest subspecies is the Siberian tiger.
Highly adaptable, tigers range from the Siberian taiga, to open grasslands, to 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 endemic to some of the more densely populated places on earth, has caused significant conflicts with humans. Of the nine subspecies of modern tiger, three are extinct and the remaining six are classified as endangered, some critically so. The primary direct causes are habitat destruction and fragmentation, and hunting. Their historical range once stretched from Mesopotamia and the Caucasus through most of South and East Asia. Today it has been radically reduced. While all surviving species are under formal protection, poaching, habitat destruction and inbreeding depression continue to threaten the species.
Tigers are among the most recognisable 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 flags and coats of arms, as mascots for sporting teams, and as the national animal of several Asian nations, including India .
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Featured in...
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What on Earth...? 2009
Watch the year's highlights from the BBC's exploration of the planet's hidden corners and rarest creatures: from the turquoise seas of the South Pacific to the Lost Land of the Volcano.
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The wildlife of Life
In autumn 2009, a major new series brought us life as we've never seen it before.
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David Attenborough's favourite moments
David Attenborough's favourite moments from the last 30 years represent not only memorable personal experiences, but also the diversity of life on our planet and the rapidly changing technological face of broadcasting.
The Tiger is
- Able to scent mark
- Camouflaged
- Carnivorous
- Helpless at birth
- Nocturnal
- Pheromone signaller
- Territorial
- Viviparous
Adaptation data provided by Animal Diversity Web
Where can I see them?
They can be found in the following habitats:
Conservation Status
The Tiger is Endangered (IUCN 3.1)
- EX - Extinct
- EW
- CR - Threatened
- EN - Threatened
- VU - Threatened
- NT
- LC - Least concern
Population trend: Decreasing
Year assessed: 2008
Elsewhere on the web
- Animal Diversity Web (animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu)
- ARKive: Images of Life on Earth (arkive.org)
- IUCN Red List information (iucnredlist.org)
- WWF: tiger fact file (panda.org)
- Details of the tiger crisis (tigersincrisis.com)
- Tiger (wikipedia.org)
Site links
BBC links
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