Top 10 Interesting Facts About Bengal Tigers
Given the prolific amount of knowledge I have of zoology - crowding about ten years or more - I've decided to segway into zoology for a while, although I do have other, frankly better ideas, but the research phase for those feels... different from doing research on various animals, I'm hoping to eventually get to these other ones. In the meantime, here are some facts about the planet's biggest cat.
It's pretty sad that they don't exist in the wild. It would be so cool to see them. I feel like we have been unfair to beautiful creatures like this just to get money. White tigers went extinct in the wild. The last known white tiger was killed in 1958, leaving only captive breeding. Trophy hunting, habitat loss, and habitat fragmentation drove the rest to extinction in the wild. Also, because of inbreeding, over 50% of white tiger cubs die. The only reason people breed white tigers is because people will pay to see them. Despite what some may say, they are not a separate species or albino. White tigers are simply Bengal tigers.
If you find this surprising, let's compare what happens when you try to bathe your typical house cat for some perspective. When you try to give your pet cat a bath, even if it is very deserving, the cat reacts with lots of thrashing, clawing, and meowing, so it feels like a minor miracle to get the cat into the tub. So forget about it being a good swimmer.
On the flipside, Bengal tigers actually love the water and have impressive swimming capabilities. They can swim at nearly four miles per hour. Bengal tigers usually jump in rivers or lakes to cool off, but will go for a swim to pursue prey as needed. However, like any species out there, the Bengal can't go for a dip without being contested. Usually, they're met with territorial disputes from crocodiles.
Unlike most other big cats, a Bengal tiger's roar is generally not out of aggression, with occasional exceptions. Bengal tigers roar to communicate with other tigers outside their territory, as if to say, "Hey you! You are getting close to my territory!" or something similar.
If a Bengal tiger is hunting, pursuing prey, or fighting other tigers over a territorial dispute, it typically makes a purring noise. Unlike that of a domestic cat, this purring sounds sinister, coming from the runner-up for King of the Jungle. This purring noise is often loud and menacing, leading to it being mistaken for a growl.
This might be surprising, or even upsetting to true animal lovers, given how rare Bengal tigers already are these days. But the Bengal tiger is a unique specimen in this area. Bengal tigers can reproduce, which I hope is no surprise whatsoever given they are not extinct. But while most mammals are fertile or ready to reproduce for a good chunk of the year, a female Bengal tiger is only fertile for less than one week out of an entire year. So the mating process might be a high-risk, low-reward period of time.
If the female Bengal tiger indeed achieves conception, the period of pregnancy lasts a little longer than 100 days, and most litters consist of four cubs at the most. The cubs leave the mother when they're around two years old, and they're considered adults or close to adults. From a statistical standpoint, the likelihood that this cub will be able to reproduce is very slim. Definitely one of the more sad facts.
For the most part, that is the case for big cats, including cheetahs. While we might assume that cats like Bengal tigers and cheetahs are marathoners, that is not the case. Canines are the marathoners. Anyway, Bengal tigers can run as fast as 40 miles per hour, but only for short distances. This means they're sprinters.
This is why they rely more on a stealth hunting approach than one that requires the pursuit of prey for long distances. This lets Bengals spend the necessary time resting and regaining stamina. Much like your typical house cat, Bengals have padded paws. This allows them to push themselves in speed while in motion. On top of that, they are fast but bulky in size. Nature is fascinating, folks.
Often, when humans are afraid of certain creatures, our first thought is to demonize them and assume that these animals aren't afraid of us. In reality, Bengals will do whatever it takes to stay away from humans. Unfortunately for the Bengal tiger, it is becoming increasingly difficult to avoid humans due to villages, mainly in India, increasing in size. This forces the habitat of the Bengal and towns to come closer together due to urbanization.
Not so long ago, it was much scarier for the Bengals in the wild. Not because of urbanization, but because they only became an endangered species in 2008. Prior to that, they were mercilessly hunted for their skin used for clothes and taxidermy.
All tigers are supposedly the descendants of Sabre-tooth tigers from the Ice Ages. I disagree with Darwinism, but for the sake of argument, I'll put that aside. Back to the point, the teeth of Sabre-tooth tigers were huge, to the extent that their breed name literally meant "sword tooth tiger." Bengal tigers don't have the same tooth length as the Sabre-tooth tigers, but the teeth of a Bengal are just as vital to survival as those of their ancestor. If not more.
Bengals need their teeth not just to eat their well-earned meal, but to kill their prey. They probably use their teeth to fight over territory or possibly a mate. Should a Bengal lose his or her teeth, for instance in a fight, they would be crippled by their newfound inability to hunt and would probably die from starvation. Unlike humans, who can survive over a month without food, a Bengal tiger can only survive a few weeks without eating. Don't expect them to look to plants as a source of food.
Okay, before I get started, I'll say that it's disappointing that some animals are more chivalrous than humans. With that said, although Bengal tigers usually hunt by themselves, as opposed to hunting with a pride like lions do, the eating process is not what you'd expect it to be if cubs are a factor.
A male Bengal will let his cubs and his mate eat from what he killed for them before eating part of the meal himself. Let's compare this with lions for emphasis. The male lion will always eat before the rest of his pride as a form of showing dominance, despite the females usually being the ones who take down their prey. I wouldn't be surprised if you assumed that Bengals did likewise, given how lions set the stage for other wild cats in many ways.
Buckle up. This one is a roller coaster of a narrative. Bengal tigers were among the first animals to be taught to do certain tricks in circus performances. Bengals were trained to follow their trainers' instructions to jump through hoops, climb ladders, or perform other tricks to amaze the audience. But this is not pure fun.
In the past few years, Bengal tiger tricks have been seen from a different perspective than just what the audience sees. The tigers were treated horribly by the circus, traveling in cramped cages and being chained. To top that off, their trainers used whips and shockers to get tigers to perform tricks. But the abuse has come to a halt. Nowadays, a circus needs permits to keep Bengal tigers, much less teach them tricks. Definitely one of the sadder facts out there.
If you look at a Bengal tiger in a zoo, you might see it licking its fur, like a domestic house cat does. You may think they do this to simply clean themselves, and as far as ones in captivity go, there's a better chance that you're right than if you were to see one in the wild. But a more peculiar Bengal tiger fact is that this is a defense mechanism against infection. A Bengal tiger's saliva has natural antiseptic components that can stop their wounds from becoming infected. These components can also cause the tiger's wounds to heal faster.
This is vital due to the previous points I made about how Bengals can be harmed when fighting over territory or when hunting. So, if a Bengal tiger is injured in either scenario, no worries. Their saliva has them covered, in a literal sense, like a built-in first aid kit. Isn't that a nice fact to end this list with?