Amur tigers
live in the forests of Eastern Russia, northeastern China, and the northern
regions of North Korea. These forests can look like jungles in the summer,
but they become very cold and snowy in the winter. Though an Amur tiger
can’t put on a coat like you can, it has special ways of being
ready for the weather. It has the thickest fur, with the most hairs
per square inch, of any type of tiger. Under its fur it has a layer
of fat that also protects it from the cold. Its large paws help it cross
the snow, as though it is wearing its own snowshoes! The Amur tiger
has less stripes and a coat that is lighter in color than other types
of tigers. It also has a white chest and belly. This coloring helps
it to hide in its snowy surroundings.
Since the Amur tiger can weigh up to 800 pounds,
why would it want to hide? The tiger wants to blend in with its surroundings
so that it can sneak up on its prey. When the tiger sees a good meal
like an elk or wild boar, it creeps through the grasses and trees and
gets as close behind the animal as it can. When it thinks the time is
right . . . POUNCE!
An Amur tiger can run about 35 m.p.h., which is pretty fast. But, with
its heavy body, it can only run that fast for about 30 or 40 feet. This
means that most of the time, the tiger misses its prey and has to try
again. When the tiger has finally killed its prey and eats its fill,
it will cover the animal with leaves and grasses to save the rest for
later meals. A tiger needs about 330 pounds of meat a month to survive—that’s
about 44 hamburgers a day!
Amur tigers are critically endangered. One reason
for this is habitat loss. The forests in which tigers live are becoming
smaller because they are being cleared to get lumber and to make roads.
The animal populations become smaller too, and tigers cannot find the
prey they need to survive. Another major reason tigers have become endangered
is illegal hunting by poachers. Tiger parts can be sold for lots of
money because they are thought to have special powers and have been
used in traditional Chinese medicines for more than a thousand years. |
