Panthera Tigris Tigris: The Beauty of the Jungle
munching the green grass. Suddenly, the bengal tiger leaps on its prey. Grabbing the calf by the neck and killing it instantly. The tiger gobbles up it’s lunch. That tiger is Liya, the tiger that I have been tracking for months now. I am in Ranthambor national park in India. The home of the world’s greatest man-eater, the Bengal Tiger.
India is the Primary location where you will find the Bengal Tiger, due to it’s wet and dry forest regions.
Some also live in mangrove forests and mountain terrain. Incredible, right?
However, the Bengal tiger is extremely endangered. This is because of loss of habitat. India is a growing country, and it is industrializing more and more. This also affects the food cycle of the Bengal Tiger. The Bengal Tiger eats deer, buffalo, and wild pigs. These animals are also dying of habitat loss, reducing their population every day. This causes the Bengal tiger to starve. India has recently started to build national parks to keep its wildlife safe and healthy. Oh! Liya is moving away from the poor calf! She’s approaching a small waterfall leading to a river. The water sprinkles droplets on Liya. She puts a paw in the river, and another. She then fully jumps in. What is Liya doing? Liya is cooling herself from the hot Indian sun. Tigers often do this, not only to keep themselves cool, but also to keep themselves clean. Liya gets out of nature’s pool and senses a movement. Deer! There are deer wandering about nearby. Liya creeps up on one of the deer. The deer senses Liya and becomes a statue. Liya slowly approaches the lone deer with the cover of damp rocks and moist plants. The deer sprints off, leading the other deer with it. Liya tries to keep up but the deer are already gone. Hunting is the hardest thing to do in a tiger’s life. However, when the Bengal Tiger catches its prey, it eats up to 60 pounds of meat in one meal! What helps these tigers hunt though? Number one, their paws, their paws help them catch, hold, and tackle their prey. They have padded paws which is important in the jungle of obstacles. ( sticks, thorns, rocks, ect.) The Bengal Tiger often hunts during the night. The cover of darkness during night gives them extra cover. Their eyes also help them hunt. They have scopatic vision which helps them see better in the night. Basically, scotopic vision is night vision. Look! Liya and a male tiger are mating! The male tiger approaches Liya. Liya stares at him trying to calm herself. The male tiger grabs Liya by the neck. This is quite painful for the female but only lasts 30-50 seconds. Why does the male grab the female by the neck? He’s trying to show that he will soothe and protect the female. Weird, right?
It’s been a couple of days since Liya and the male, (which I am calling “Jack”) mated. Now they part ways. Mated Bengal Tigers only stay 3-5 days, then they leave each other.
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Liya is now pregnant, she can give birth to 6 cubs, but on average only 2 survive to be adults, this is due to competition between other cubs and tigers, shelter, and starvation.Some are even born dead.
Liya needs to sustain itself, this is the hardest part of a female Bengal Tiger’s life. Bengals don’t live in pack like lions, where another female helps the pregnant female catch food.
In the Bengal Tiger world, the female must take care of itself and, when the cubs are born, it needs take care of them. Because of this, the pregnancies only last from 2-3 months. When the cubs are born, they are born helpless, blind, fully dependent on their mother. They are born weighing 2 pounds, not so powerful. Also, the mother Bengal Tiger, takes its cubs and moves it to a safe den. When the cubs are about 3 weeks old, they emerge from the den. The mother will teach them how to hunt and continue to nurse them. The cubs spend lots of time playing with their siblings, that helps them prepare for hunting, and protecting their territory when they are adults. The cubs leave their mother when they are 18 months old to find their territory. The males tend to leave earlier and go farther away than the females.
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The Bengal Tiger is a very endangered species. Help these poor tigers in any way you can. Say goodbye to Liya and keep on showing interest for tigers.
Sources
1. Bioexpedition 2: Discovery Education
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