![]() ![]() They can also take down larger, more challenging prey, including elephant calves and leopards, according to SeaWorld (opens in new tab). (opens in new tab) What do tigers eat?Īll tigers are carnivores, and most of their diet consists of large prey weighing 45 pounds (20 kg) or more, such as pigs and deer. This "black tiger" coat is also seen in one population of wild tigers in Similipal Tiger Reserve in eastern India, likely because the population is small and isolated, with limited genetic diversity, according to a 2021 study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A rare genetic variation can even cause tiger stripes to broaden and fuse together so that the tiger appears blacker than usual. Humans can also selectively breed tigers in captivity to change the color of their stripes to make them lighter and more golden. This inbreeding led to a range of health problems in the white tiger population, including premature deaths, deformities and stillbirths, according to the 2013 study. Mohan's descendants were deliberately inbred by humans to increase the chances of passing on his mutation. A white tiger that was captured in central India in 1951 and named Mohan is the ancestor of almost all white tigers in captivity today. However, the mutation is extremely rare in the wild, and the last known wild white tiger was hunted and killed in 1958. White tiger gene variations originate from the Bengal tiger population. A 2013 study published in the journal Current Biology (opens in new tab) found that a mutation in a pigment gene called SLC45A2 is responsible for stopping the production of red and yellow pigments that give normal tigers their color, resulting in tigers that are white with black stripes. ![]() The white tigers seen in some zoos are not a separate species or subspecies from orange tigers rather, they are the result of a mutation in a single gene. (Image credit: INTI OCON / Contributor) (opens in new tab) Related: The strange history of white tigers Are white tigers natural?Ī sleeping white tiger cub. However, a study published in the journal Current Biology (opens in new tab) in 2018 presented genomic evidence supporting the traditional classification of six genetically distinct subspecies of tigers ![]() sondaica, and continental tigers, a subspecies that contains all other tigers under the Bengal tiger name P.t. A 2015 study published in the journal Science Advances (opens in new tab) argued that there are only two subspecies of tigers: Sunda tigers, which combined Sumatran tigers and extinct Bali tigers and Javan tigers into one subspecies under the name P.t. In recent years, some researchers have challenged the traditional tiger classification. sondaica) disappeared by the early 1980s, according to the IUCN Cat Specialist Group (opens in new tab). virgata) went extinct in the early 1970s and Javan tigers ( P.t. balica) were last documented in the late 1930s, Caspian tigers ( P.t. Humans wiped out the extinct tiger subspecies by hunting them and destroying their habitats. The living subspecies were Bengal tigers ( Panthera tigris tigris), Amur tigers ( P.t. What are the different types of tiger?įor many years, scientists separated tigers into nine subspecies, including six living subspecies and three extinct subspecies. Today, scientists estimate that tigers occupy less than about 6% of the land they once did, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (opens in new tab) (IUCN). Tigers used to have a much larger range, but poaching, deforestation and other human activities have caused tiger populations and habitats to shrink. Tiger habitats include tropical forests, arid forests, flooded mangrove forests and taigas (cold forests with coniferous trees), according to the San Diego Zoo (opens in new tab). Most populations inhabit tropical regions in countries such as Thailand, India and Indonesia, but tigers can also be found in much colder environments, including in the far east of Russia, according to Panthera (opens in new tab), a wild cat conservation organization. ![]()
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