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| Latin name | Panthera tigris altaica |
| Length | Male 2.7-3.8m (female smaller) |
| Height | 105-110cm |
| Weight | 250-280kg |
| Gestation | 95-112 days |
| No. of young | Up to 7 cubs- normally 3-4 |
| Lifespan | About 15 years in the wild |
In the wild, Siberian Tigers are found in the Amur-Ussuri region of Siberia. They are also found in northern China and Korea. The Siberian Tiger occupies a very large territory. If food sources are stable, it will occupy this area for many years. When prey is scarce the Siberian Tiger will embark on long migrations, often travelling several hundreds of kilometres.
Although the Siberian Tiger has acute sensitivities and power, only one in ten of its hunting attempts are successful. It therefore has to spend a lot of its time hunting and it preys mainly on deer, boar, elk, lynx, bear, fish rabbits and hares.
The Tiger will creep to within 10-25m of its prey and then suddenly pounce and grab it by the nape of its neck, with its back feet still planted on the ground. This will kill smaller prey but larger prey is brought to the ground and then suffocated by a bite to the throat. If a Tiger misses its prey, it may chase it for up to 200m but rarely catches it.
Once killed, the carcass is dragged to cover, usually near water. The Tiger will then eat and cover the remains to eat later. A healthy diet for a Siberian Tiger consists of 9-10kg of meat a day to sustain itself in the cold climate. It can eat up to 50kg of meat in one sitting.
Mating between tigers can take place at any time of the year. A female indicates it is ready to mate by leaving leaving deposits of urine and scratch marks on trees. As the Siberian Tiger's range is so large, the female may go in search of the male. The female is only receptive for 3-7 days and the pair will mate many times over a couple of days and will stay together the whole time. The male will then leave her and mate with another female. The gestation period is 95-112 days and 2-4 blind cubs are born in a sheltered den. They will suckle from their mother who rarely leaves them. The cub's eyes open at 2 weeks old and their first teeth start to grow. The cubs are less than a year old when they first start to hunt and will leave their mother when they are between 3-5 years old.
The Siberian Tiger is the largest living cat in the world. It is much larger than the Bengal Tiger and has a lighter coat. The coat is stripped with a white underside, which extends to the back legs and tail. The Siberian Tiger's winter coat lacks the red stripes of tigers living in warmer countries. Their winter coat loses some of its colour to help it blend in with its snow covered habitat. Because this Tiger has to with stand temperatures as low as -45 degrees, it has a longer and thicker coat than other tigers.
Its body is large and heavily muscled to give it great strength. It also develops a layer of fat (up to 5cm thick) on its flanks and belly to insulate it against winds and low temperatures.
The Siberian Tiger has retractable claws which can be kept in when resting and walking but can spring out when hunting.
Both males and females will mark the boundaries of their ranges by scent marking them with urine and scratching trees. It is only the male that will defend his territory against other males, especially those areas close to females or close to food. The pricked ears of a tiger effectively funnel sounds to the inner ear.
The Siberian Tiger is an endangered subspecies. It is estimated that there is no more than 200 Siberian Tigers left in the wild and now there is probably nearly as many tigers in captivity as there are in the wild. For a long time its remote forest habitat and strict wildlife protection laws in the former Soviet Union protected the Siberian Tiger. Several years ago, the USSR opened its boarders and trade routes. The sales of the natural resources in the tiger's woodland homes increased. This meant that tigers were facing habitat loss. At the same time, the funding for wildlife protection was cut giving poachers easier access to the tigers.
- Tigers have excellent binocular vision and can see over 5 times better than man at night.
- Tigers are capable of dragging prey that is so heavy that it would take a dozen people to move.
- The heaviest Siberian Tiger known was 384kg.
- A tiger's roar can be heard up to 2km (1.5 miles) away.
- Tigers can purr. Domestic cats purr on the in-breath and the out-breath. Tigers only purr on the out-breath.