Basics on Bengal Tigers


Common Bengal Tiger appearance

The Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) is one of the largest members of the cat family and is the most common species of Tiger. They can be identified by their coloration of yellow to reddish orange fur with dark stripes and a cream-colored underbelly. The males are normally about 3 meters long and females measure around 2.7 on average. Typical weight for an average male is around 235 kg and females are about 140 kg (Mazák, 1981).

These animals tend to live alone as they roam their habitat, and they come together to breed. There is no definite breeding period for these animals, they have been observed to reproduce at various times of the year. When females give birth, they often have a litter of about 2-4 cubs. The cubs will then stay with their mothers for about two years before going off on their own. In the wild, Bengal Tigers live on average about 8-10 years ("Bengal Tiger," 2012).


Bengal Tiger cubs

These Tigers’ diet consists of mostly large ungulates and some medium-sized other types of prey. They prefer animals like deer, antelope, and buffalo. Some of the specific species they hunt in their habitat are Chital, Sambar, Guar, wild boar, and the occasional livestock (Reddy, 2004).

The Bengal Tiger is currently listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).  Average estimates put the count for the amount of these tigers in the wild at about 1,850 individuals ("Bengal (Indian) Tiger," 2012). There have been multiple areas of land set aside for Tiger conservation. These are known as Tiger Conservation Landscapes (TCLs). However, even with these the Bengal Tigers are facing a serious decline in their habitat (Global Tiger Recovery Program, 2010).  The figure below shows the range for these Tigers and how their habitat has been substantially decreased from where their natural range was. Currently these animals are faced with many forces acting together to reduce their numbers and threaten extinction of these Tigers. (See tab “Problems Being Faced”)



An additional feature to note of this species is the White Bengal Tiger. This animal comes from a recessive mutation in the normal Bengal Tiger genome and results in a Tiger with white fur and dark stripes (Xavier, 2010).


White Bengal Tiger

6 comments:

  1. I don't know if all of the information on this page is factually correct. My website is also on tiger conversation and I have different data. You said that the wild bengal tiger population stands at 2500-3500, but this number is for ALL of the tiger sub-species combined, not just the bengal tiger. I think the wild bengal tiger population is actually less than 2500. Also, the map that you have shows the range of all of the tiger subspecies, not just the bengal tiger. The bengal tiger is only found in India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal. Perhaps use a map that shows range of only the bengal tiger, since that's the tiger sub-species that you are focusing on.

    -Simrajot Singh

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  2. this was a great draft of your website. The problems being faced page was very thorough. I am going to assume that the info was correct, because I dont know enough to comment on that. For your next draft make sure to include your own synthesis ( unless you did and I missed it). Also you could add information about what people can do to get involved, and maybe show some positive steps that are being taken right now to save the species. Overall I think this is a very interesting website.
    Christine Jubb

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  3. I like the use of the map, but as mentioned above I believe that the range included is that of different species of tigers, not only of the Bengal. I am sure you can find a map of Bengal only range however, so that is a minor problem. Otherwise, I like the images presented of the species and this is well laid out.

    William Cooper

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  4. Overall, I think your website is pretty well structured and laid out. Very clean format! For the homepage I think it would be better if you added something in like a short purpose/intent of the website instead of leaving it blank so it can better guide the readers. All the pages are well written and give plenty of information.

    Things I would like to see included:
    -Synthesis graphic (was it the map?)
    -Expand on the current recovery plans you mentioned: What's happening, how well is it working, and your opinion on it.

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  5. I really like the format of your sight. you provided a good description of the tiger and successfully highlighted the threats. I really like the map photo - especially how it presents it globally, then by country. I would just double check on what Simrajot posted but it looks good!

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  6. soon we will lose this animal-like other tiger species it is already https://treesline.com/list-of-extinct-tigers-with-pictures/

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