The Royal Bengal Disappearing

The Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris or Panthera tigris bengalensis)  are listed as endagered on the convservation status and there only 2000 in the wild today. They mainly reside in  India and Bangladesh. They are also found in parts of Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and southern Tibet.  

This largest member of the cat family usually live in tropical jungle, brush, mangrove forests, marsh lands, and tall grasslands and does not migrate.  

The cause of endagerment is mainly human. The main reasons are habitat destruction (woods are cut down for manufaturing and swamps are dried up)  and poaching (tiger fur is valuable and some do it for sport). Some cultures even believe that powdered tiger bones have a medical healing power.

There was no disruption in the food chain as they are at the top of all food chain predators and help keep things in balance.

“There were once over 50,000 of these beasts roaming around free just more than a half a century ago”.

The bengal tiger is the most numerous tiger sub-species and is the secon largest (physically) behind the siberian tiger. Their coat is light yellow to orange with dark black stripes and a white belly and some rare tigers are entirley white. The average length for them are 2.4m-3.1m and height is 90-110cm, weight is 140kg and 240kg for the females and males repectivley. Its role in the ecosystem is at the top of the food chain. 

Today, the bengal tigers that are in captivity are prtoected by the zoos and breeding programs help to increase th epopulation, however this is a slow process in which few cubs are born. Laws are being created to help protect tigers against poaching.  The World Wildlife Protection Act has measures in pleace to restore their habitat, strengthening anti-poach efforts and creating physical barriers between human-tigers. The Wild life Protection Act lets some government agencies to enforce measures on poaching etc. and since there are half of as many bengal tigers there in 2003 India has set up 7 new wildlife parks made to protect tigers.

You can do many things to help the cause including  organise a fundraiser or bake sale for the community or school to support zoos and wildlife organizations and could also “Adopt a Tiger” in which  you help pay for the food and required cost to help support a tiger. Something simple such as visiting your local national park or spreading the word about these orgainzations could also help.