The Endangered Bengal Tiger |
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Bengal TigerAlthough you may see them in captivity such as zoos and protected wildlife preserves across the country, one of the most beautiful creatures still living in the wild is the Bengal Tiger. Following are some interesting Bengal Tiger facts.In nature, they are mostly solitary animals that live and hunt on their own, but are at times seen traveling together in groups of 3 or 4. One noticeable exception is the female with offspring. She will stay with her cubs, feed and hunt with them, until they are able to fend for themselves at about 2 years of age. During mating season, a pair will stay together only a few weeks. The male will then return to his territory, leaving the female alone and without help to whelp and raise their cubs. The Bengal Tigers' natural habitats are the rainforests and other areas of dense vegetation of India and Southern Asia including Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma and Nepal. Being on top of the predator chain, the Bengal Tiger has no serious enemies except man who has just about hunted them into extinction. Illegal poaching is still going on for tiger pelts, bones and various other body parts sought by collectors and black market operators. There were about 40,000 individuals known to exist in the early 1900's but today there are thought to be less than 2,000. They are now classified as an endangered species and are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. There are a number of organizations dedicated to Bengal Tiger conservation. The Bengal Tiger female mates only about every 3 years because it takes nearly that long to raise her litter. There are just two to four cubs to a litter. Because of this, plus the fact that a cub's sexual maturity is not reached until he or she is three to four years old, it would be a considerable period of time for the depleted Bengal Tiger population to see any significant increase in their natural habitat even if illegal hunting and poaching were to stop immediately. Please contribute to help save the tiger. |
