White Tiger Wikipedia

White tiger

For other uses, see White tiger (disambiguation).

A captive white Bengal tiger at the Madrid Zoo

The white tiger is a pigmentation variant of the Bengal tiger, which is reported in the wild from time to time in the Indian states of Assam, West Bengal and Biharin the Sunderbans region and especially in the former State of Rewa.^[1] Such a tiger has the black stripes typical of the Bengal tiger, but carries a white or near-white coat.

Variation

A captive White tiger

The white Bengal tigers are distinctive due to the color of their fur. The white fur caused by a lack of the pigmentpheomelanin, which is found in Bengal tigers with orange color fur. When compared to Bengal tigers, the white Bengal tigers tend to grow faster and heavier than the orange Bengal tiger. They also tend to be somewhat bigger at birth, and as fully grown adults. White Bengal tigers are fully grown when they are 2–3 years of age. White male tigers reach weights of 200 to 230 kilograms and can grow up to 3 meters in length. As with all tigers, the white Bengal tiger’s stripes are like fingerprints, with no two tigers having the same pattern. The stripes of the tiger are a pigmentation of the skin; if an individual were to be shaved, its distinctive coat pattern would still be visible.^[2] For a white Bengal tiger to be born, both parents must carry the unusual gene for white colouring, which only happens naturally about once in 10,000 births.^[2]Dark-striped white individuals are well-documented in the Bengal tiger subspecies (Panthera tigris tigris) as well as having been reported historically in several other subspecies.^[2] Currently, several hundred white tigers are in captivity worldwide, with about one hundred being found in India. Their unique white color fur has made them popular in entertainment showcasing exotic animals, and at zoos.

Tiger Wikipedia

Tiger

"Tigress" redirects here. For other uses, see Tiger (disambiguation) and Tigress (disambiguation).

Panthera tigris Temporal range: early Pleistocene–Recent PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
A Bengal tiger (P. tigris tigris)
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Felidae
Genus:	Panthera
Species:	P. tigris
Binomial name
Panthera tigris (Linnaeus, 1758)
Subspecies
P. t. tigris P. t. corbetti P. t. jacksoni P. t. sumatrae P. t. altaica P. t. amoyensis †P. t. virgata †P. t. balica †P. t. sondaica †P. t. acutidens †P. t. trinilensis †P. t. soloensis
Tiger's historic range in about 1850 (pale yellow) and in 2006 (in green).[2]
Synonyms
Felis tigris Linnaeus, 1758[3] Tigris striatus Severtzov, 1858 Tigris regalis Gray, 1867

The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the largestcat species, most recognisable for their pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with a lighter underside. The species is classified in the genus Panthera with the lion,leopard, jaguar and snow leopard. Tigers are apex predators, primarily preying on ungulates such as deer andbovids. They are territorial and generallysolitary but social animals, often requiring large contiguous areas ofhabitat that support their prey requirements. This, coupled with the fact that they are indigenous to some of the more densely populated places on Earth, has caused significant conflicts with humans.

Tigers once ranged widely across Asia, from Turkey in the west to the eastern coast of Russia. Over the past 100 years, they have lost 93% of their historic range, and have been extirpated from southwest and central Asia, from the islands of Java and Bali, and from large areas of Southeast and Eastern Asia. Today, they range from the Siberian taiga to open grasslands and tropical mangrove swamps. The remaining six tiger subspecies have been classified as endangered by theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The global population in the wild is estimated to number between 3,062 and 3,948 individuals, down from around 100,000 at the start of the 20th century, with most remaining populations occurring in small pockets isolated from each other, of which about 2,000 exist on the Indian subcontinent.^[4]A 2016 global census estimated the population of wild tigers at approximately 3,890 individuals.^[5][6]Major reasons for population decline include habitat destruction, habitat fragmentation and poaching. The extent of area occupied by tigers is estimated at less than 1,184,911 km²(457,497 sq mi), a 41% decline from the area estimated in the mid-1990s. In 2016, wildlife conservation group at WWF declared that world's count of wild tigers has risen for the first time in a century.^[7]

Tigers are among the most recognisable and popular of the world's charismatic megafauna. They have featured prominently in ancient mythology andfolklore, and continue to be depicted in modern films and literature. They appear on many flags, coats of arms, and as mascots for sporting teams. The tiger is the national animal ofBangladesh, India, Malaysia and South Korea.