Pictures of the Amur tiger. Amur (Ussuri) tiger photo

Amur tiger- one of the most rare species predators. Back in the 19th century there were quite a lot of them. However, due to poachers in the 30s of the twentieth century, the species was on the verge of complete extinction. At that time in the territory Soviet Union only 50 individuals remain.

During the 2008-2009 expedition, a special expedition “Amur Tiger” took place. Thus, it was found that there were only 6 tigers within the boundaries of the Ussuri Nature Reserve.

Description of the species

The Amur tiger belongs to the class of mammals. In fact, it is one of the largest representatives of predators on the planet, because its mass can reach up to 300 kilograms. Moreover, according to some data, during the period of their large population there were animals of this species that weighed almost 400 kg. It goes without saying that now you can no longer find such people.

The physical capabilities of this type of predator are also impressive - a tiger can easily carry prey weighing half a ton. The speed of movement can reach up to 80 km/h, and in this indicator it is second only to the cheetah.

It should also be noted appearance this animal. Like other predators of this class, it is characterized by a coloration in the form of a red background and white transverse stripes. It should be noted that in this case, this color also plays a camouflage role - in order to get prey, the tiger needs to get extremely close to it, and this is where this color helps, since it simply blends in with the dry vegetation.

Tiger food

The predator eats only meat and most often it is quite large prey. In general, the Amur tiger spends most of its time searching for prey. Wild boars, wapiti, and deer are the main diet of the predator. For adequate nutrition, they need about 50 ungulates per year. However, if an animal lacks large prey, it does not disdain small ones - livestock, badgers, hares, and so on. At one time, a tiger can eat about 30 kilograms of meat, but the average portion is 10 kilograms.

Lifestyle

No matter how formidable this animal is, the habits that are inherent in all cats cannot be taken away from it. The tiger prefers solitude - it is part of a pack, and also goes after prey alone. The Amur tiger leaves the boundaries of its territory only if it needs to catch large prey. The predator also leaves special marks on its territory:

strips the bark off trees;
leaves scratches;
splashing urine on vegetation or rocks.

The male defends his territory quite harshly - the tiger simply tries to destroy uninvited guests, but with representatives of his own species he tries to eliminate the conflict through a menacing roar. Fighting is a last resort for the Amur tiger. Moreover, he can live in complete silence for several years.

Individuals reproduce twice a year. The tiger is by nature a polygamous animal, so it can keep several females on its territory at once. If another tiger claims them, then even a fight is possible.

Place of residence

Resides this type predator in the south-eastern territory of Russia, the banks of the Amur River, in Manchuria and even in the territory of the DPRK. Largest quantity tigers are currently located in the Lazovsky district, in the Primorsky Territory.

A comfortable area for a tiger to live is a mountainous river area with trees such as oak and cedar. An adult tiger can live on an area of up to 2,000 square kilometers without problems and with maximum comfort. The female can live alone in an area of up to 450 square kilometers.

Reasons for disappearance

Of course, the main reason that the number of Amur tigers has dropped to almost nothing is their moderate extermination by poachers. Up to a hundred tigers were killed a year just to get their skin.

However, scientists who have studied in detail this question, found out that the reason for the disappearance is not only mass shooting. The reasons for the disappearance could also be the following:

critically insufficient amount of food items;
deliberate destruction of bushes and trees where Amur tigers lived.

It goes without saying that these two factors did not arise without human help.

What is happening to the Amur tigers now?

Now this species of predator is listed in the Red Book as such, which is on the verge of extinction. Adults and cubs are under strict protection on the territory protected areas. However, based on observations, it was established that the protected area may not be enough for them and they go beyond its limits, which is extremely dangerous.

Unfortunately, this is far from the only species of animal that has practically disappeared from the planet only because man contributed to this. In this case, mass shooting due to the desire to profit led to such extremely negative consequences.

Experts in this field are making every effort to ensure that the Amur tiger population increases. However, it is quite difficult for this predator to reproduce in captivity, so mass attempts do not always lead to success.

Ussuri, Far Eastern, Amur - all these definitions refer to the subspecies of one tiger that lives in the Primorsky Territory.

This large representative of the cat family surpassed the lion in size, and its weight sometimes exceeds 200 kg. Such mass and size do not prevent the tiger from moving silently in the taiga, sometimes reaching speeds of up to 50 km/h, since its paws have soft and wide fur pads that prevent them from falling into a snowdrift.

A thick layer of fat placed on the abdomen, which protects from the cold and piercing wind, also helps to survive in the taiga in winter.

The Amur tiger loves solitude, which makes it different from most cats; The tiger closely monitors its territory and is ready to defend it at any moment. Please note that sometimes the property area exceeds 500 km. sq., the tiger marks the boundaries of its property by scratching tree trunks. The Ussuri not only controls its territory, but also closely monitors the marks of other animals.

Individuals of different sexes come together only for the purpose of procreation. The “honeymoon” in these animals lasts from 5 to 7 days, after which the male leaves the female.

Tigers have special greeting sounds that are produced when the animal vigorously inhales air through its mouth and nose at the same time. Another way to show friendliness is to touch the head, face or sides of another animal.

Amur tiger cubs.

The Amur tiger is one of the animals that are listed in the Red Book of Russia, since today there are only 450 representatives of this species left. But this does not stop Russian hunters. Perhaps we need to follow the example of China and introduce the death penalty for killing these animals so that people will finally start thinking about nature.

Video: Ussuri Tiger: dangers and realities. Yuri Darman, director of the Amur branch of WWF Russia, tells the story.

Tigers are representatives of the class of mammals; they are large predators from the cat family. The length of individual males is 3 m, and their weight exceeds 300 kg.

The tiger animal is protected by the state and cannot be hunted.

Description of predators

The body of tigers has developed muscles and is flexible. A convex forehead stands out on the round head, beautiful eyes and small ears that can detect any sound.

Animals see well in the dark. Scientists say that predators are good at distinguishing colors.

The highest weight was recorded in bengal tiger, it amounted to 388.7 kg. Females are smaller than males in size and body weight.

Tiger whiskers stick out like antennae, they are located on the muzzle in 4 or 5 rows. The tiger's fangs are 8 cm long, so it is not difficult for him to quickly deal with his prey.

The animal's tongue has keratinized projections that help in cutting the carcass. In addition, it is also an additional hygiene product. Adult carnivores have 30 teeth.

The front limbs have 5 fingers, but the hind legs have only 4. The fingers have claws that the tiger can retract. The shape of the mammal's ears is round. The pupil of the eye is round, and its iris is yellow.

Representatives southern species distinguished by short and thick fur. Their brothers from the north have fluffier fur. In the paint palette, the main color is rust, to which shades are added: red and brown. The animal's chest and belly are lighter, and sometimes they are simply white.

What gives the big cat its extraordinary beauty is its distinctive pattern of dark brown or black stripes. Stripes with pointed ends are located throughout the body. They can bifurcate and then connect again.

The number of stripes on the body is more than 100, and on long tail as if rings made of stripes are put on, and at the end there is usually a black frame.

The stripes are arranged in a unique pattern and can be compared to fingerprints.

For the animal itself, fur with this color provides excellent camouflage.

If you pay attention to the tracks, the male has larger paw prints than the females. The footprint dimensions are 15 or 16 cm long, 13 or 14 cm wide. The roaring beast can be heard 3 km away.

Large dimensions do not prevent the animal from demonstrating excellent physical characteristics; the tiger is an excellent runner. The speed of the beast can reach up to 60 km/h, while it runs quickly across any landscape. In captivity big cat can live about 15 years.

The king of beasts and the tiger - which of them is the strongest?

Many people are interested in this question. In fact, little is known about actual fights between lions and tigers. Therefore, there is no sufficient reason to claim that one of the predators is stronger than the other.

A tiger and a lion can be compared by external signs or way of life.
In terms of weight, a tiger is 50-70 kg heavier than a lion.
Both animals clench their jaws with equal force.
Lions and tigers kill their prey in the same way. They bite the victim's neck with powerful fangs.
If we compare the lifestyle, it is very different for two different predators.

So, the tiger hunts alone, he hunts in his own territory. They practically do not collide with each other; when males go hunting, they do not meet.

Lions live in prides or clans. Males have to fight to have the right to hunt. They often engage in fights for females during the mating season. Such battles can result in serious injury or death of the male.

Based on endurance, it is difficult to say who is in the lead. Both animals are excellent runners, and endurance is affected by age, habitat and health status.

It is difficult to decide unambiguously which animal is stronger.

Types of tigers

The classification includes 9 subspecies, but 3 of them are now extinct. IN wildlife inhabit:

Ussuri or Amur tiger. Its population is small. The large predator has thick fur, which does not have as many stripes as other representatives of the species.

The Ussuri predator is orange in color and has a white belly. The body length can be 3.8 m, the height at the withers can be up to 106 cm, and the weight can be up to 220 kg.

Bengal tiger. This subspecies is larger than the others in numbers. The color of predators varies from white to light orange. The length of the male can be up to 310 cm, and body weight up to 320 kg. Maximum length the predator's tail is 110 cm. The population numbers about 3,000 individuals.

Indochinese tiger. The animal differs from the rest in its dull red fur with narrow and short stripes. The maximum length of tigers is 2.55 cm. The male weighs up to 195 kg.

Malayan tiger. It is the smallest, its length is only 237 cm and its weight is 120 kg. Between 600 and 800 representatives of this species live in nature.

Sumatran tiger. It also belongs to the small species. The male weighs up to 140 kg and reaches a length of up to 225 cm.

Chinese tiger. The subspecies, which has about 20 representatives, lives in China. The male is 2.6 m long and weighs about 177 kg.

In the photo of tigers you can see representatives with a yellow color. These representatives of the species are called golden tigers. They have lighter fur and brown stripes.

Tiger photo

Description of the Amur tiger

Babr (from the Yakut “baabyr”) is the name in Rus' for the Siberian tiger, now known as the Far Eastern, Ussuri or Amur tiger. Panthera tigris altaica (the Latin name of the subspecies) is recognized as one of the most impressive in the cat family, surpassing even in size. Nowadays, the Amur tiger is depicted on the flag/coat of arms of the Primorsky Territory and the coat of arms of Khabarovsk.

Babr adorned the coats of arms of Yakutsk (since 1642) and Irkutsk, until he turned into a “beaver” under Emperor Alexander II due to the fault of an overly zealous champion of spelling who served in the heraldic department. The error was later corrected, but the coats of arms of Irkutsk and the region still display a strange black animal with a large tail and webbed paws, carrying a sable in its teeth.

Appearance

The Amur tiger is a beautiful wild cat with a characteristic striped coloring of a flexible body crowned with a rounded head with proportional ears. Babr, like all cats, is armed with 30 sharp teeth and tenacious claws that help tear carcasses and climb trees.

The predominant background color (red) is replaced by white on the chest, belly and whiskers. Transverse black stripes cross the body and tail, turning into symmetrical black stripes on the head and muzzle.

Fleeing from the harsh winter, the Amur tiger is forced to grow thick hair and accumulate a solid (5 cm) layer of subcutaneous fat, which protects the predator from frostbite.

The huge tiger can move without unnecessary noise, which is explained by the shock-absorbing ability of its wide paws with soft pads. That is why the babr silently walks and runs through the summer Ussuri taiga, without falling into high snowdrifts in winter.

Tiger sizes

The Amur tiger, classified as one of the largest representatives of the cat family, lately increasingly smaller in size than those living in national parks India. These related subspecies were once comparable in size, but Ussuri tiger began to become smaller due to proximity to a person, or rather, due to economic activity the last one.

Fact. The average Amur tiger stretches up to 2.7–3.8 m in length with a weight of 200–250 kg and a height at the withers from 1 to 1.15 m.

Zoologists suggest that individual individuals can gain 300 kg or more, although a less impressive record is officially registered - 212 kg. It belongs to a male with a radio collar attached to his neck.

Lifestyle, behavior

Unlike the lion, the Amur tiger, like most felines, does not join prides, but prefers a solitary existence. An exception is made only for females, who, together with their brood, can live in the male’s territory, which usually reaches 600–800 km². The female's home range is always smaller, approximately 300–500 km².

The male vigilantly monitors the inviolability of the boundaries, marking them with secretory fluid and leaving deep scratches on the trunks. The Amur tiger, despite its size, easily climbs into the crowns of old oak trees and even onto the tops of tall spruce trees.

The animal does not go beyond its territory if there are many ungulates grazing on it, but if necessary, it is able to travel from 10 to 41 km. The tigress covers a shorter distance per day, from 7 to 22 km. The Amur tiger can drag a horse carcass for more than half a kilometer without visible fatigue, and when light and in the snow it is capable of accelerating up to 80 km/h, second only in agility.

Interesting. The predator distinguishes colors well, and in the dark its vision is 5 times sharper than that of a human, which is perhaps why it likes to hunt at dusk and at night.

The Ussuri tiger is extremely silent: at least this is what naturalists say, who have observed the animal in nature for years and have never heard its roar. The tiger's roar is heard only during the rut - females are especially zealous. A dissatisfied babr growls hoarsely and dully, switching to a characteristic “cough” when angry. A peaceful tiger purrs like a domestic cat.

When greeting a comrade, a tiger uses special sounds produced by sharp exhalation of air through the nose and mouth. Friction of sides and contact of muzzles tell about the peaceful attitude of predators.

The Amur tiger is far from a cannibal (unlike the Bengal), which is why it tries to avoid humans and bypass their housing in every possible way. If you accidentally encounter a tiger, it is better to stop without trying to run, and slowly give way without turning your back to it. You can talk to him, but only in a calm and confident voice: a scream that turns into a pig squeal is more likely to stir up the tiger’s interest in you.

From the middle of the last century to the present time within the borders settlements In the Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories, no more than 10 cases of Amur tiger attacks on humans have been recorded. Even in its native element, the Ussuri taiga, a tiger very rarely attacks hunters pursuing it.

How long does the Amur tiger live?

The lifespan of the babr in nature is 10, less often – 15 years. IN ideal conditions Amur tigers often celebrate their 20th anniversary in zoological parks.

Fact. One of the oldest Amur tigers considered to be Lyuty, who lived for 21 years in the Khabarovsk Utes wild animal rehabilitation center.

Lyuty was caught in the taiga, carelessly injuring both jaws, after which the tiger developed osteomyelitis, which was surgically stopped in 1999. And the very next year Lyuty sported a new fang made of a silver-palladium alloy with gold plating, thanks to a unique operation performed by Russian and American doctors.

The injured mouth did not allow Lyuty to be returned back to the taiga, and he became not only the most visited pet at the rehabilitation center, but also the hero of numerous enthusiastic reports.

Sexual dimorphism

The difference between the sexes is manifested, first of all, in weight: if female Amur tigers weigh 100–167 kg, then male ones are almost twice as much - from 180 to 306 kg. Research in 2005 conducted by zoologists from Russia, India and the USA showed that in terms of weight, modern Far Eastern tigers are inferior to their ancestors.

Fact. Historically, the average male Amur tiger weighed about 215.5 kg, and the average female weighed about 137.5 kg. Nowadays, the average weight of females is 117.9 kg, and that of males is 176.4 kg.

Sexual dimorphism is also visible in the lifespan of the Amur tiger: females live less than males. The latter are removed from the upbringing and education of their offspring, entrusting all parental functions to the mother, which noticeably shortens her earthly lifespan.

Range, habitats

The Amur tiger is found in a relatively limited sector, most of which is a protected zone - this is China and the southeast of Russia, namely the banks of the Amur / Ussuri in the Primorsky and Khabarovsk territories.

As of 2003, the highest concentration of predators was observed in the foothills of the Sikhote-Alin (Lazovsky district of Primorsky Krai), where every sixth Amur tiger lived. In general, when choosing habitats, tigers try to be closer to their main food (ungulates), and also take into account the height of the snow cover and the presence of shelters, for example, creases or dense thickets of bushes.

The Amur tiger often settles in such biotopes as:

mountains with deciduous trees;
mountain river valleys;
padi with forests of the Manchurian type, where oak and cedar predominate;
clean cedar forests;
secondary forests.

The Amur tiger has been displaced by humans from low-lying landscapes suitable for agriculture. In retaliation, babrians often inspect the outskirts of neighboring settlements in winter, when their usual food supply becomes scarce.

Diet of the Ussuri tiger

It is very difficult to obtain such a number of ungulates, considering that only one out of 6-7 attacks ends in success. That is why the predator hunts a lot, eating everything that is smaller than it: from the Manchurian hare (the size of a glove) to Himalayan bear, often equal in mass to the tiger itself.

The Amur tiger is the largest predator in the cat family. Currently, it is on the verge of extinction, and is therefore listed in the Red Book. The mammal is graceful and very beautiful. The weight of an adult can reach up to 300 kg, with a body length of up to 2.9 meters. The Amur tiger lives in Russian Far East. Lives in the Ussuri taiga. The animal has incredible strength. There are known cases when a tiger dragged a large horse that it had killed along the ground for up to half a kilometer. Among cats he has no equal. The color of the Ussuri tiger is also impressive. He has a very beautiful and thick orange coat. At the same time, the tiger’s belly is always white. The animal is very fast and agile. He has lightning-fast reactions, jumps well and can run at a speed of 80 km/hour.

The animal is perfectly adapted to existence in extremely low temperatures. A thick layer of subcutaneous fat protects it from hypothermia. The animal has acute color vision and is able to distinguish objects in complete darkness.

The Ussuri tiger is a unique business card Primorsky Krai. His image is even on his coat of arms. The tiger habitat is protected. It includes the territories of the Amur and Ussuri rivers, located in the Primorsky and Khabarovsk territories. Recently, the Amur tiger can be found in some areas of China, indicating an increase in its population.

The Amur tiger is the ruler of a vast territory (male up to 800 square kilometers, female up to 500 sq. km). As a rule, the animal does not leave its possessions. This only happens when there is a shortage of food. In this case, the tiger may approach human habitation and attack domestic animals. He hunts at night. Males prefer to live completely alone. Females live in small groups. Tigers communicate with sounds. Being in a good mood, they rub their bodies against each other and touch their heads.

The tiger spends hunting large number strength and energy. This is due to the fact that out of ten attempts to catch prey, only one is successful. The animal tracks the victim and tries to get as close to it as possible, while remaining invisible. This is followed by a lightning-fast throw and an attempt to grab the victim by the throat. If unsuccessful, the tiger does not pursue the animal, but prefers to look for a new victim. He drags his prey to a pond, where he eats. The remains are hidden in a secluded place, which he guards.

The tiger feeds on large artiodactyls, which include sika deer and wapiti. Can hunt small animals, frogs, birds, mice. Sometimes he enjoys fruit. He eats up to 10 kg of meat per day. Doesn't attack humans. Lives for about 15 years.

The mating period is not tied to a specific season. This can happen at any time. Pregnancy in a female Amur tiger lasts 3.5 months, after which two to five tiger cubs are born, weighing up to 1 kg. They are blind and helpless. They begin to see only after two weeks. Up to two months they feed only on mother's milk, and only then they begin to eat meat little by little. They switch completely to a meat diet at the age of six months. The mother feeds her offspring for two years. After this, the cubs become independent and begin to live separately. The male does not take part at all in raising and feeding the cubs.