Amur tiger: interesting facts about the animal

It often happens that the most defenseless are not small and inconspicuous, but the largest and strongest. They are always in sight and attract attention. A hundred years ago in Central Asia they hunted Amur tigers. Now they are only five hundred. And the man's task is to correct his mistakes before the noble predator and restore the population of such a handsome man as the Amur tiger. Interesting facts about his way of life help to draw people's attention to these problems.

Habitat

Ten years ago, a formidable predator was on the verge of extinction. Only very recently it was possible to restore a sufficient number to maintain the population. Now only in the taiga of the Khabarovsk and Primorye Territories is the Amur tiger.

Interesting facts about this predator can be found in the archival documents of the Turkestan general-governorship. A hundred years ago it was possible to hunt the Amur tiger and the Fergana Valley. Noble cat hosted in the vastness of Eastern Eurasia up to Alaska.

Outside Russia, the Amur tiger lives only in some areas of China.

From the claws to the tip of the tail

Interesting facts about the Amur tiger can be called, beginning with his appearance. For the inhabitants of the East, he was almost a deity, awe-inspiring. The growth of an adult predator reaches 120 cm, the body is 3 m long in males and about 2.7 m in females. The luxury tail can be 1 m. The weight of the Amur tiger is 300 kg.

The Amur tiger lives in cold areas, he needs a warm fur coat. In winter, its fur grows to 5 cm on the chest and up to 10 cm on the stomach.

Stripes serve as a kind of passport for the Amur tiger. Their number, location, thickness help specialists to distinguish which subspecies the predator belongs to.

Living Among Yourself

Like any cat, he likes to walk around on his own and the Amur tiger. Interesting facts are hidden in his behavior and relations with his brethren. The Amur tiger is by its nature a loner. Vapors are formed only for the continuation of the genus.

Since the females are several times larger than the males, the newly appeared striped dad immediately goes off in search of other tigresses. After 4-5 months, newborn cubs appear. In the brood they are usually four or five. The female of the Amur tiger is a good mother. For several years she cares for helpless cubs, who are born blind and toothless.

Up to six months, the tigress feeds them, then teaches them how to get their own food. By two years the Amur tiger is already a skilled hunter, able to cope with the largest prey. Despite this, for another couple of years children live next to their mother, leaving her with the achievement of sexual maturity.

Interesting facts about the Amur tiger represent the relationship of females. Like people, daughters are closer to the mother and even after leaving her care, they constantly visit the parent.

For independent life, a tiger needs a vast territory, the size of which exceeds 100 km ² . They mark the boundaries of their possessions with excreta, and the meeting of two predators can be a reason for clarifying the relationship. Nevertheless, before a bloody fight comes not often.

The Amur tiger does not live very long. In natural conditions - an average of 15 years, in comfortable conditions of zoos - up to 25 years.

Fast and effective hunter

For protection from the cold nature has awarded the predator a layer of subcutaneous fat of 5 cm thick. Despite this, the Amur tiger is rapidly flying through the snow, chasing after the prey. Interesting facts are its speed indicators. At a speed of 80 km / h, the striped sprinter is able to catch up with any beast.

Unless the cheetah surpasses him on this indicator. A strong and hardy, striped predator is capable of a long distance dragging on its prey weighing five hundred kilograms. And this is with a weight of 300 kg.

A few beasts of Primorye are able to avoid getting into the diet of the Amur tiger. But since he needs a lot of meat - 9-10 kg per day, a thunderstorm prefers to take a large prey. The basis for his menu are boars, deer. Moose, red deer also can not escape the claws of the Amur tiger. Up to 50 large ungulates in a year are required of him. He does not disdain even small prey (rabbits, rabbits). Like any cat, a tiger likes to eat fish. Salmon is quite capable of diversifying its meat diet.

The predator is not able to distinguish colors, but sees in the darkness the tiger of the Amur is very good. Photos of his hunting exploits were filmed mostly at night. This is the period of his activity.

In the most difficult times, when it is not possible to get food for themselves, the Amur tiger is selected to the possessions of people and hunts livestock.

Enemies

Such an effective killing machine by definition can not have many enemies in the natural environment. On the contrary, many predators themselves become victims of Amur tigers. For example, wolves have a similar diet, thereby direct competitors to large cats. Therefore, the Amur tiger mercilessly expels them from its territory.

Interesting facts can be learned from the relationship of these big cats and bears. Taiga giants are comparable in strength to striped predators, but a particularly hungry tiger is able to cope with a brown beast.

The only and most terrible enemy is a man. It's not just that the hunters killed the animals. Changing the nature, a person deprives tigers of their natural habitat. People push them out of the valleys, and they leave for the mountain fir-tree thickets, where there is still prey.

Man and the Amur tiger: interesting facts. Red book warns

Paradoxically, it was the size and power of the predator that became his weak point. The Amur tiger was one of the most coveted trophies for hunters, it was destroyed mercilessly. In the eastern countries he was given a mystical meaning. His liver and other organs were actively used in various medical preparations. This also led to an active hunt for the Amur tiger.

Man, mastering nature, displaces the predator from its natural environment. The number of animals on which the Amur tiger hunts for livelihoods is also declining.

Interesting facts about the life of a noble predator try to convey to the people of many conservation societies.

Drawing attention to this problem, they are trying to help the beautiful beast survive. He has long been listed in the Red Book and is still on the verge of extinction.

Curious facts

The Amur tiger is a very bright character. It was a symbol of the Olympic Games in 1988. On the arms of Khabarovsk and Primorye, there is also an image of an Amur or Ussuri tiger. With great respect for him in China. In the Middle Kingdom, killing an Amur tiger is equated with killing a person. You can pay for it with life.

Until recently, the Amur tiger stood on the verge of extinction. At the cost of the incredible efforts of indifferent people and social organizations, it was possible to maintain the hope for the survival of this species. It remains to be hoped that for the future generations the Amur tiger will not become yet another sad reminder of the unreasonable activity of man.