Angry tiger

A few Tiger facts for you:

Tigers are the largest of the big cats - bigger than the king of beasts, the lion (although this can only be said of the Siberian Tiger).

There were originally eight subspecies of tiger, the
Javan, the Bali, the Caspian, the Indochinese, the Sumatran, the Bengal, the Siberian, and the South China tiger. Sadly three of the eight subspecies are now
extinct. The Bali tiger met its demise in the 1940's,
the Caspian in the 1970's and the Javan in the 1980's.

The South China tiger is believed to be the origin of
all tigers.

The tiger is the most endangered species of big cat. Of
the remaining tiger subspecies the South China tiger is
the most critically endangered with only around sixty
living in Chinese zoos and approximately twenty in the
wild (although none have been spotted for over twenty
years). This puts this subspecies at the very top of the
endangered species list.

A captive tiger can live up to twenty years, while a wild
tiger can expect to live ten to fifteen years.

Due to the cold winters of Southern Russia and Northern China the Siberian tiger is the largest of the subspecies with an average length of 9ft 8' and an average weight of 540 pounds, it has the thickest fur and roams the largest territories.

The Bengal tiger is found in India and around the Nepal/China border, it is the second largest of the
subspecies weighing in at around 480 pounds, and is 9ft 5' long (average).

The Indochinese tiger is found across most of Southeast
Asia, it is 8ft 8' long and weighs in at 380 pounds
(average).

The South China tiger is found only in Southern China,
it is 8ft 1' long and weighs in at 336 pounds (average).

The Sumatran tiger is the smallest remaining subspecies, with an average length of 7ft 8' and a weight of 250 pounds, this is due to the fact that its small territories are restricted to the Islands of Sumatra.

The heaviest recorded tiger was a Siberian weighing in
at an amazing 1,025 pounds.

The Bengal tiger has the largest population with around
3000. Next is the Indochinese with approximately 1000-1500, then the Sumatran with 500-1000, then the Siberian with 230-400 and last and unfortunately least the South China tiger with around 60-80.

The tigers saliva is antiseptic and comes in handy for
cleaning their wounds.

An adult wild tiger is a solitary animal and will establish
its own territory, which can cover over 100 square miles.

A tiger will circumnavigate its territory every few days.

If you were to shave the fur from a tiger it would still
have stripes.

The tigers most developed sense is its hearing.

A tiger can only usually expect a one in twenty success
rate when bringing down prey.

On average a tiger can eat up to 60 pounds of meat at one time.

After a feed, a tiger will usually bury the remaining
animal carcass in an attempt to hide it from scavengers,
and then exhume it for its next meal.

A tiger can go two to three days without eating.

In the mangrove swamps of the Sundeban in India tigers have been known to eat man. To deter these attacks villagers wear masks on the back of their heads as attacks are always from behind.

A tiger can spend up to eighteen hours sleeping.

Tigers reach maturity and are ready for mating at the age of three.

A female tiger will usually give birth to 2-3 cubs in the
wild, unfortunately the fatality rate for cubs can be
quite high.

The gestation period can range from 102-106 days from
time of conception.

Tiger cubs can stay with their mother for up to 2-3 years.

There are five toes on a tigers forefeet and four on its
hind feet.

A tiger's night vision is six times greater than a human's.

The tendons in a tiger's leg are so strong that an animal
has been known to remain standing after it has been shot dead.

It is said that the South China tiger is impossible to
train, many Chinese circuses gave up after trying to
implement them into their acts.

There are now more tigers in captivity than there are in
the wild.

A group of tigers is called a Streak.

There are twice as many captive tigers in the USA than there are anywhere in the wild.

Approximately fifty humans are killed by tigers each year.