What Are Tigers?

The tiger is the largest big cat.  They are carnivores.  This means they eat meat.  It is known for it's unique orange coloring and stripes.  The scientific name for the tiger is the Panthera tigris.

Fun Fact: Tigers enjoy swimming, and they even take a swim on hot days!

Size

Tigers are massive, the biggest big cat species known to man.  The largest species of tiger, the Siberian Tiger, can grow to nearly 10 feet long, and can weigh up to 400 pounds.  They can use their weight to their advantage, knocking down prey and then holding it down under their hulking body.  They are very powerful cats, and despite their size, they can run quite fast.

Fun Fact: Tigers can live for 15 to 20 years in the wild.

Stripes

Tigers, as you probably already know, have stripes.  Black, orange and white stripes, to be specific.  But some tigers are black, and have tan stripes, while others can be white with tan stripes.  But whatever stripes a tiger has, they all help with camouflage.  That's right.  A tiger's distinctive stripes help with camouflage when on the hunt.

Fun Fact: Mothers typically feed their cubs until their cubs are 2 years old.

Claws And Paws

Tigers have big front paws, with very long, sharp claws.  As you might know, tigers use these sharp claws to take down prey, but did you know they use their claws to mark their territory on trees?  If you don't know what that means, it means they make a mark to let other animals know, "Hey!  I own this land!"

Fun Fact: Just like snowflakes, no two tigers have the same stripe pattern.

Habitat

Today tigers live mainly in Asia, in countries like India, Burma, Russia, China, Laos, Thailand, and Indonesia.  They live in many different habitats like tropical rain forests and mangrove swamps.  They like to live near water, and vegetation.  Why?  Mainly because there is a lot of prey by water, and they can camouflage easily in the vegetation.

Fun Fact: Tigers have been known to hunt small rhinos and elephants.