Bengal Tiger - Wild Animal Encounters

Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris)
Type: Mammal
Diet: Carnivore
Average lifespan in the wild: 10 years
Size: 1.5 to 1.8m body length
Weight: 140 to 270kg
Conservation Status (IUCN): Endangered
Tigers are the largest members of the cat family and are renowned for their power, beauty and strength.
Bengal tigers live in India and are sometimes called Indian tigers. They are the most common tiger and
number about half of all remaining wild tigers.
Tigers live alone and aggressively scent-mark large territories to keep their rivals away. They are
powerful nocturnal hunters that travel many miles to find buffalo, deer, wild pigs and other large
mammals. Tigers use their distinctive coats as camouflage (no two have exactly the same stripes). They
lie in wait and creep close enough to attack their victims with a quick spring and a fatal pounce. A hungry
tiger can eat as much as 30 kilograms in one night, though they usually eat less.
After a gestation of around 100 days a female tiger will give birth to a litter of two to six cubs, which they
raise with little or no help from the male. These newborn cubs weigh around 1kg and are blind and
helpless, the mother feeds them milk for 6-8 weeks before first introducing them to meat. Cubs cannot
hunt until they are 18 months old and remain with their mothers for two to three years, when they
disperse to find their own territory.
Male Bengal tigers fiercely defend their territory from other tigers, often engaging in serious fighting.
Females are less territorial and occasionally will even share their territory with other females.
Over the last 100 years, hunting and forest destruction have reduced tiger populations from hundreds of
thousands of animals to perhaps fewer than 2,500. Tigers are hunted as trophies, and also for body parts
that are used in traditional Chinese medicine. All five remaining tiger subspecies are endangered and
many protection programs are in place.
A Unique Wildlife Experience
Wild Animal Encounters Pty Ltd | PO Box 110 Kenthurst NSW Australia 2156
Phone: 02 9629 6960 | Email: [email protected]
ABN: 64 132 007 713
www.wildanimalencounters.com.au