The average patron of Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve does not need a physical description of what a tiger looks like; but in the interest of anyone who hasn't had the benefit of spotting a tiger in the wild or at a zoo, we will move forward in the "tiger" series with a description of the tiger's morphology (in biological sciences, morphology is the study of the structure and form of animals and plants).

Tigers are the largest species of wild cats and their appearance is an ode to their feline features.  Depending on where they are found, tigers have characteristic reddish-orange coat with vertical black stripes running along the sides of the tigers, right from the tail to the face.  The underside of the legs, belly, chest, throat, and muzzle are white or pale.  There are white patches above the eyes which extend to the cheeks. Tigers also have a white spot on the back of each ear.  Scientists believe that these spots are meant to look like eyes to confuse prey or avoid potential threats.

Tigers are large, powerful cats perfectly equipped to hunt prey much larger than their own size.  They have a well-defined muscular body with a short and broad head and a thick neck.  They have massive shoulders and forearms, with the hind legs longer than their fore legs allowing them to make huge leaps.  Although lions are proclaimed to be the "King of the Jungle", tigers are bigger than lions.  Tigers exhibit sexual dimorphism (which means that males and females of a species look different) and the males are significantly largeer than theri female counterparts.  On average, make tigers weigh 100-261 kgs while females weigh 75-177 kgs.  Male tigers have a body length ranging between 6 to 10 ft.  As a rule of thumb, males are generally 1.3-1.6 times larger than females.  Another interesting feature of male tigers is their facial ruff, which resembles a lion's mane.

While on a safari, many of us have come across the pug marks of a tiger.  What do these pug marks indicate?  Like the domestic cat or dog, tigers have soft padded paws, which offer a cushion while traversing large distances.  The padded feet also allow the tigers to sneak up on their prey without making a sound.  Unlike canids (species of the dog family) though, tigers have retractable claws ie. the claws are hidden inside a protective skin sheath when not being used. This allows the claws to remain sharp for hunting.  Not to mention, the claws of the tiger are huge and can grow up to 10 cm in length.

Interesting factoid: The stripe pattern of each tiger is unique like the fingerprint of a human.  This allows researchers to identify individual tigers using their stripe patterns!

Tigers have large powerful jaws, allowing them to crush the wind-pipes of their prey by exerting immense pressure.  These jaws are supported by a set of 30 teeth.  Tigers have the largest canines of all big cats in the world and range from 6.4-7.6 cm in length.  Interestingly, the canines have pressure-sensing nerves that enable tigers to identify the exact point to strike to server the neck of their prey. Teeth towards the back of the mouth (called "carnasials") enable the tiger to shear meat from their prey like knives, while the small incisors in the front are meant to pick off meat and feathers from their prey.  The tiger's tongue is covered with numerous small, sharp, rear-facing projections caller "papillae".  These papillae allow the tiger to strip the meat off the bones of their prey. 

- Yashaswi Rao
Wildlife Biologist, TATR

*From Tadoba Diaries, August 2024 issue