Amur Tiger

Most of the Amur tiger diet consists of large ungulates (hoofed mammals), including deer species, antelope, and wild boar. Smaller animals can sometimes be food sources when larger prey is unavailable. Tigers will eat between 40 and 80 pounds of meat when they successfully take large prey, but they do not typically eat every day.

At the Zoo, the tigers’ diet consists of raw meat and a weekly offering of bones to simulate the natural fasting that occurs in the wild.

Amur tigers are found only in a limited part of southeast Russia along the Amur River and a small population is also found in northeastern China.

Formerly known as the Siberian tiger, this subspecies is now referred to as the Amur tiger after the Amur River which flows within their limited range.

Tigers are habitat generalists and have adapted to a variety of environments. Amur tigers live in temperate oak and pine forests.

Tigers are at the top of the food chain and have no natural predators. In areas where the Amur tiger shares its habitat with other large carnivores like bears and wolves, adult tigers are dominant predators. Young tigers are vulnerable and can be prey for larger carnivores.

Humans and their activities are the only real threat to tigers. Poaching for the illegal trade of body parts used in traditional Eastern medicine has contributed to the decline of all tiger subspecies. Amur tigers are specifically threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation due to logging. The increasing human activity in these areas leads to a rise in the human hunting of large ungulates, which are the primary prey of tigers. Reduction in prey numbers also results in tigers becoming more dependent on livestock, which can lead to tiger deaths due to negative human-tiger interactions.

Like other tigers, their coat is golden orange with dark stripes. Each animal has stripes that are unique, like fingerprints. Amur tigers have more white and fewer stripes than other tigers. These colors help them hide in their environment, breaking up their shape: white is like snow, black is like shadows, and yellow is like leaves. The underside of the limbs, belly, chest, and muzzle tend to be white or lighter in color. Tigers also may have white on their faces and a dot of white behind each ear.

Amur tigers live in a harsh environment, where extremely cold temperatures and deep snow are common. These tigers have several adaptations that help keep them warm. Thick fur and a layer of fat on their flanks and bellies help protect them from the elements. Like most tigers they have a ruff of fur around their necks, however, their ruff is more developed in Amur tigers. Additionally, extra fur on their paws also helps protect them from the cold and allows them to walk silently.

Tigers have broad shoulders, powerful forelimbs, and long retractable claws, which allow them grasp and take down very large prey. A tiger’s tongue is covered in hard bumps called papillae that allow them to scrape meat off the bone of prey easily.

Adult tigers are mainly solitary, except for mating. After meeting, they may engage in courtship play – pawing, licking, cheek rubbing, as well as quiet sounds like grunting and chuffing. Tigers can breed any time of the year, but the most common is from November to April. The gestation period for tigers lasts approximately 3 and a half months. After this time, the female tiger will give birth to a litter consisting of one to three cubs, on average. At birth, the cubs are blind and their eyes will not open until they are between 6 and 14 days old. Similarly, their ears will remain closed until they are between 9 and 11 days old. A mother tiger will spend most of her time in the den, nursing during this period. At about 2 months old, the cubs will begin following their mother outside the den and begin to eat solid food. Cubs are usually fully weaned from mom’s milk at about 3 ½ months and they will start participating in hunting expeditions by 6 months. Young tigers must learn to stalk, attack, and kill prey from their mother. Male tigers do not provide parental care. Tiger cubs will stay with their mothers and siblings until they reach 1.5 to 3 years old. Once they have learned to successfully hunt for their own prey, they will venture off on their own. At that time, their mother may begin to look for a new mate.

Adult Amur tigers maintain home ranges, with male ranges overlapping those of several females – female ranges rarely overlap with each other. Tigers communicate with one another through scent markings, including urine, rubbing their cheek glands on trees and shrubs, and raking their claws on trees to mark them with the glands on their pads. Tigers have a unique way of processing interesting scents called the "flehmen response". This behavior helps them better process information by directing the scent to a specialized organ called the Jacobson’s organ. During this response, the tiger holds its mouth open with the tongue partially out, its nose is wrinkled, and its upper canines are showing.

Tigers also communicate vocally through roars, growls, snarls, moans, and hisses. Tigers are one of the four cats that roar; others are lions, leopards, and jaguars. The Amur tigers at the Zoo can often be heard calling to each other with a loud “ye-o-oon" sound or chuffing as a greeting.

Amur tigers can be active at any time of day, but they tend to be most active at night when the main prey species are also more mobile. Using the dense vegetation as cover, tigers rarely chase their food, instead stalking and pouncing on unsuspecting prey. They are amazing jumpers, with the ability to leap 12 to 15 feet with ease. Tigers are also excellent swimmers.