Peaches is a bengal tiger (panthera tigris) born in August of 1989. Here she is shown with a litter of 3 cubs. Tigers are solitary animals in the wild, coming together only when the female is ready to breed or when she is raising her young. The average litter size is three to four cubs although five to six are not uncommon! Gestation is about 106 days. The female will care for her cubs alone with no help from the father. The young will stay with their mother for 2-2 1/2 years, learning to hunt & survive on their own. The tiger's natural habitat ranges from the jungles of Indonesia & Thailand to India & Siberia. There are zoos across the world that have white tigers including Australia near Hervey Bay. You can see these majestic creatures and while you're there, go on a whale watching tour for the ultimate experience. The Siberian tiger is the largest of the big cats. Some adult males can weigh 1000 pounds although 800 pounds is more common. At Oakhill Center we currently care for 3 tigers. Hobbs, which is one of the youngsters in the above photo (now all grown up), Charlie & Sierra.
All tigers have distinctly different coat patterns. Field biologists studying these animals in the wild can distinguish each animal by its strips! Many believe that the white tiger is a different species. This is not the case. The white tiger is merely a color phase of the bengal tiger. All white tigers in the United States originated from a single white tiger imported by the National Zoo many years ago. For this reason, many white tigers are inbred & have the potential of many health problems.
Other Tiger photos
Youngsters playing!
Taking a nap!
Clowning around!