Tiger

Although the tiger is a versatile species that can thrive in an extremely wide variety of natural habitats, these need to be fairly intact and relatively undisturbed, with an abundant supply of large-sized prey animals.

An adult tiger needs about 3000 kg of food a year. This translates roughly into one deer-sized animal every week. A large deer like the Sambar is by far the tiger’s preferred prey. The meat from an adult sambar can provide a tiger with enough food for several days. A tiger will return to feed on a large kill again and again until virtually nothing is left.

Tigers feed on a wide variety of other animals. In different parts of India, prey species include gaur, chital (spotted deer), wild pig, wild buffalo, swamp deer, nilgai and hog deer. Some individuals are bold enough and adept enough to kill a rhino calf from right under its mother’s nose; or a elephant calf from amidst a herd. Tigers have also been known to kill and eat sloth bears and leopards. A tiger in the Ranthambore Tiger Reserve killed a large crocodile! On occasion, a hungry tiger will kill and eat smaller animals too, like a langur or a porcupine.

Next to food, the most important requirement for a tiger is territory. A male tiger with a territory encompassing those of several females has more mating opportunities. A female in control of a ‘home range’ with abundant prey has the best chance of raising more cubs.

With so much at stake, Tigers are fiercely possessive of their turf, and scent-mark and defend their territories from rivals.

In forests where prey animals are abundant, more tigers can live in a given area because each tiger can meet its requirements within a smaller territory. But where prey is scarce, individual territories need to be large, leading to a smaller population of tigers for the same given area.

Typically, a male tiger will have a large territory that encompasses the smaller territories of as many as five females.

Fights between evenly matched animals can be extremely fierce, even leading to the death of one or both combatants. The death(s) need not ensue from a single fatal bite. More often, a badly injured combatant will limp away severely incapacitated, only to die later. While a herbivore might be able to survive for weeks with a broken leg, a badly crippled tiger, unable to hunt, will weaken and starve to death.

Fatal fights are more common between males. In fact, in forests with a high density of tigers, studies have shown that a male tiger may be able to hold on to a territory for only about 5 years before it is driven out or killed by a stronger rival.

A tigress that manages to carve out a territory starts breeding by or before the age of three. When in estrus, she vocalizes frequently to attract a male. When the pair meets, their romance can be rough. Tigers are normally solitary animals and any meeting with another adult is fraught with uncertainty. A male tiger is much larger than a female and extremely intimidating. The female reacts aggressively to his initial advances by snarling, showing her canines and swatting at him with her paws. Gradually, she calms down and invites him to mate with her by rubbing herself against him and squatting on the ground in front of him.

The pair stays together for 4 or 5 days, mating as frequently as 4 to 5 times an hour throughout the day and night. At the end of this period the male wanders away. He has a territory to patrol and other females to seek out.

Being a predator, a tigress cannot afford to carry too much weight in her belly. So she gives birth to her cubs after a relatively short gestation period of about 105 days. The nursery, which is always in the most secure and secluded place the female can find, could be a cave, a gorge, or even a dense thicket. Because of the short gestation period, the cubs are born tiny, blind and helpless and are completely dependent upon their mother’s tender care.

The male may drop by occasionally, but rarely stays with his family for long, and does not take part in any active parenting.

As they grow, the young tigers follow their mother on hunts and learn the art of stalking. Sometimes they spoil her chances of making a kill through their haste and over enthusiasm.

So she will often leave them somewhere and hunt on her own. When she succeeds in making a kill, she will drag it to where they are, or call them to it.

She also actively trains them to catch prey and kill it by ‘capturing’ a fawn and releasing it in their midst, allowing them to practice on it.

When the cubs are fully grown at about two years of age, the tigress starts driving them away. They will now become transient tigers in search of territories of their own. She will soon seek out a mate and begin the process of starting another family.

(taken from www.truthabouttigers.org)

 

Gabbar

Gabbar

 

Gabbar

(Picture taken at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra in June 2014)

“Leopard-Face” male tiger (so called due to the many spot like markings on his face), is also referred to as “Gabbar”. He showed up at Jamunbodi area. He is a big fellow with a large head and prominent, dark stripes. When we saw him on safari he was benevolent and relaxed.



Ustad - T24



Ustad - T24

Ustad - T24

(Picture taken at Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan in June 2013)

T-24 Ustaad is popular male tiger at Ranthambore National Park. Ustaad is very dominant and aggressive tiger in Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve. T-24 Aka Ustaad is the father of Sultan Tiger cub.

T-24 is the largest tiger in Ranthambore Tiger Reserve. He has killed one of the assistance forest officer. But he is not man eater.

 

Sultan - T72

(Picture taken at Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan in June 2013)

Sultan is male cub of Noor & Ustad.

Noor - T39

(Picture taken at Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan in June 2013)

Noor, the celebrity tiger of today is T-39 that has captivated many attentions of Ranthambore visitors. This amazing tigress is famous for its amazing beauty and wavy pattern on its body. The names given to it has much significance. The name suggested "Noor" means glow as her wavy patterns bring a sparkle like attractions to the visitors.

Noor and Sultan

(Picture taken at Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan in June 2013)