Malay Tiger: description, photo

This graceful animal belongs to the Cat family. Of all the subspecies of the tiger, Malay is the smallest. He has a very flexible body and a long strong tail.

In jumping the tiger helps the dexterous legs with low, but wide forelimbs. On the paws there are five fingers with tenacious retractable claws.

The beast has a rather heavy skull, on which ears of a neat shape are located. Particularly attracted by the sight of the Malay tiger. His huge eyes with round pupils inspire fear to both animals and humans.

It should be noted that "big cats" see the surrounding world in a color image. Nature has awarded the tiger a strong jaw with large fangs. This helps the predator to seize the victim and strangle her. The animal's tongue consists of sharp tubercles. Due to this, the tiger easily rips off the skin and meat.

Other features of the structure of the body

The Malay tiger weighs between 100 and 120 kilograms. The length of his body along with the tail reaches up to 2.4 m. In the wild, "big cats" live from 15 to 25 years. They live in fields with medium vegetation, forests and abandoned agricultural plantations. As a rule, select areas with a small number of people.

How beautiful is the Malay tiger! The photo shows a bright color scheme of his body. It is full of orange and orange hues. The belly of the beast is white and fluffy, and the pattern of the black stripes on the body is related to a predator with an Indonesian appearance.

Lifestyle

The Malay tiger is the beast of twilight and darkness. At this time his vision is even sharper than in the daytime. Scientists claim that the animal's eyes are 6 times better than human eyes. This allows the "big cat" to easily scan the prey.

Predator for a long time sneaking behind the victim, pondering further tactics of behavior. The unsuspecting victim soon gets into an ambush, and then attacks from the rear. In most cases, such a hunt is successful.

The tiger growls and starts eating immediately. He can consume 18 kg of meat in one sitting. Wild boars and bulls, bears and livestock most often serve as food for him.

The Malay tiger likes to spend a lot of time in the water. This is an excellent swimmer! The reservoirs are a real salvation for the animal from heat and annoying flies.

Among the relatives, the beast tries to convey its mood with the movements of the body. If the animal experiences anger, then its ears assume a vertical position, the tail is strained and straightened, and the fangs are exposed.

Tiger of Malaysia on its territory

In most cases, representatives of this kind of loner in life. Only the female pays a lot of time to her offspring. It takes her most of her life.

The Malay tiger is a great owner. Males and females mark their sites with gland secrets and make scratches on tree trunks. By tags, you can determine the sex of the animal, age and physical health. Strangers are not allowed by animals to their territory. The exception is the females during estrus.

Reproduction of the beast

The Malay tiger itself comes to the territory to a female individual. Before marriage games, a tigress rides for a long time on the ground and does not admit a male. He patiently waits for her to drink enough and release her aggression.

Animals frolic for several days in a row. But except for one male, a tigress can mate during the same period with others. Because of this, the female may have cubs from different tigers.

It is curious that the male does not feel paternal feelings towards the kittens. On the contrary, the tigress protects the offspring from the male, as he is able to kill the cubs in order to persuade the partner to marry again.

The Malay tiger. Description of offspring

Pregnancy of the female lasts 103 days. For childbirth, a tigress chooses a secluded place - a dense thicket or cave. In one litter, there are usually 2-3 tigers.

They are born blind and deaf, weighing from 0.5 to 1.2 kilograms. Two weeks after the birth of the young, they are able to eat solid food. But real hunting is waiting for them in 17-18 months.

The cubs are with their mother for 3 years. Then they leave from its territory for independent existence. Female individuals leave the tigress-mother a little later than the male.

People and the wild beast

Throughout history, man hunted a tiger. For example, there is a legend about how Alexander the Great went to little-known lands and with the help of darts conquered a wild beast.

Ancient Korea specially trained people to hunt for a tiger. This was given a whole ritual: during the hunt it was necessary to remain silent. For such a campaign they sewed a jacket made of blue linen cloth and produced a turban of the same color, decorated with numerous beads.

The hunters were cut out of the tree with protective amulets. Before the campaign, men were fed with tiger meat. Such people were appreciated in Korea. They were even allowed not to pay state taxes.

In the early 19th and 20th centuries hunting for the "big cat" was of a mass character among the English colonialists. They were also interested in the Malay tiger. "In English" was organized such a hunt - the participants marched on elephants or gaurs.

For bait tiger travelers used goats or sheep. Sometimes the hunters loudly beat the drums to drive the animal out of the thick of the forest. Of the killed tigers they made stuffed animals that long adorned the houses of aristocrats.

Also, the hide of the beast served as a material for making souvenirs and decorative objects. Tiger bones are credited with magical properties, and they are still in demand in the black markets of Asia.

At the moment hunting for "big cat" is prohibited, but poaching is still in many areas. The Malay tigers do not differ in peaceful behavior either.

Some of them hunt livestock. Cases of cannibalism are known. In 2001-2003, 41 people were killed in the forests of Bangladesh from the tusks of the Malay tiger.