Tiger Facts for Kids

Today, tigers live mostly in Asia, in countries like India, Bangladesh, China, and Thailand, with some species living in eastern Russia, like the Siberian Tiger.

Tigers used to live all over Asia, but their territory has shrunk quite a bit, due to human territorial expansion and hunting. Scientists think there are between 3,000 and 4,000 tigers living in the wild, with another 4,000 living in captivity, and they are considered an endangered species.

Tigers live in different types of forests, where their camouflage is useful, and they can stalk and ambush their prey by hiding in the bushes. They always live near water, and are good swimmers, unlike other cats.

Tigers can live up to 25 years, whether in the wild or in captivity, though not all tigers survive the first few years after leaving their mother, when they're first starting out.

Tigers are carnivores, eating other animals, such as deer, buffalo, wild boar, or smaller animals like rabbits or fish. Although tigers usually hunt smaller animals, they are very strong, and can sometimes eat other predators, like bears or crocodiles.

Tigers usually hunt at night, sneaking up to their prey before they jump at it to knock it down. Although tigers can run very quickly (up to 40 miles per hour), they can't do this for very long, so it's better to sneak up as close as they can and catch their prey before they can start running. Hunting isn't easy, and tigers only catch their prey about 5% of the time.

If a tiger kills a large animal, it can sometimes take days to eat the whole thing, so it hides the body and comes back later when it's hungry again.

Because tigers sometimes live close to humans, some farmers lose some of their animals to the tigers, which is part of the reason sometimes tigers and humans don't get along.

These tigers are named after the region where they are found. Most tigers look similar, with differences and size and other details, but they all look like tigers, with the easily recognizable orange fur and black stripes.

Tigers are known for their orange fur and black stripes, but a few very famous variations are almost as recognizable:

• The white tiger is perhaps the most famous breed of tiger, extremely rare in the wild, but popular in zoos and circuses. The white fur is caused by a very rare genetic variation, so these animals are bred together to produce more white tigers. This can produce genetic defects, which has led some people to protest the breeding of white tigers.
• The golden tiger is even more rare than the white tiger, with only about 30 golden tigers in captivity. It has golden brown fur, and can even produce white tiger cubs without any stripes at all.
• A liger is a cross between a male lion and a female tiger, and is the biggest cat in the world, even bigger than lions or tigers, and looks like a mix of the two.
• A tigon (or tiglon) is a cross between a female lion and a male tiger, which also looks like a combination of the two animals.

Tigers are famous throughout the world for being strong hunters, and many countries use the tiger as a symbol of their strength as well. The tiger is the national symbol of India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and South Korea, and is found in the Chinese zodiac and constellations.

The tiger was also named the world's most favorite animal, in a survey by Animal Planet, and with so many famous tigers in children's stories, it's easy to see why. Tigers are found in all sorts of stories, from children's cartoons to ancient legends.

Famous tigers include Shere Khan and Tigger, and Hobbes, from Calvin and Hobbes. Even though tigers are ferocious hunters, they're just too beautiful not to be in children's stories too, where they are usually more cuddly than scary.

Tigers will be in stories forever, because they're such beautiful, beloved, fascinating, mysterious creatures. Grrr.