tiger, (Panthera tigris), largest member of the cat family (Felidae), rivaled only by the lion

(Panthera leo) in strength and ferocity. The tiger is endangered throughout its range, which
stretches from the Russian Far East through parts of North Korea, China, India, and Southeast
Asia to the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The Siberian, or Amur, tiger (P. tigris altaica) is the
largest, measuring up to 4 metres (13 feet) in total length and weighing up to 300 kg (660
pounds). The Indian, or Bengal, tiger (P. tigris tigris) is the most numerous and accounts for
about half of the total tiger population. Males are larger than females and may attain a shoulder
height of about 1 metre and a length of about 2.2 metres, excluding a tail of about 1 metre;
weight is 160–230 kg (350–500 pounds), and tigers from the south are smaller than those of the
north.

Siberian tiger
The Indo-Chinese (P. tigris corbetti), and Sumatran (P. tigris sumatrae) tigers are bright
reddish tan, beautifully marked with dark, almost black, vertical stripes. The underparts, the
inner sides of the limbs, the cheeks, and a large spot over each eye are whitish. The rare Siberian
tiger has longer, softer, and paler fur. White tigers, not all of them true albinos, have occurred
from time to time, almost all of them in India (see also albinism). Black tigers have been
reported less frequently from the dense forests of Myanmar (Burma), Bangladesh, and eastern
India. The tiger has no mane, but in old males the hair on the cheeks is rather long and
spreading. Although most classifications separate the species into six subspecies, some merge
subspecies or suggest that two tiger species exist, P. tigris on the mainland of Asia and P.
sondaica of Java, Bali, and Sumatra.
Natural history

Sumatran tiger
The tiger has adapted to a great variety of environments, from the Siberian taiga, where nights
can be as cold as −40 °C (−40 °F), to the mangrove swamps of the Sundarbans, where the
temperatures reach more than 40 °C (104 °F). Tigers haunt the ruins of buildings such as courts
and temples and are at home in habitats ranging from dry grassland to rainforest. Grasslands,
mixed grassland-forests, and deciduous rather than densely canopied forests support maximum
population densities, as these habitats maintain the highest number of prey species. Having
evolved in the temperate and subtropical forests of eastern Asia, the tiger is less tolerant of heat
than other large cats, which may explain why it is an adept swimmer that appears to enjoy
bathing. Under stress it may climb trees.