Tigers -- hunting, prey and captive feeding.

Cat hunting in general:

Though usually thought of as a nocturnal hunter, strictly speaking tigers are crepuscular; this simply means they commence hunting in the twilight period just after sundown. Among all 37 species of cat the cheetah is the only exception to the night hunting rule; it is a diurnal, or day-hunting, cat.

The majority of felids are solitary hunters; the lion is the exception in that the pride co-operates in catching prey. Most of the work in a lion pride is done by the swifter, lighter lionesses and very little hunting is done by the males.

Tigers use a combination of keen vision and hearing, along with a powerful sense of smell, to locate a potential meal. They tend to concentrate their search for prey around selected water holes, making the rounds several times a night in the process of the hunt.

Concealment:

Standing motionless in a mix of long yellow grass, jungle vegetation, dappled sunlight, and shadows, the tiger becomes almost invisible and can observe potential prey while searching for young or weak animals.

The photographs on this page show how well the tiger's coat provides concealment in a variety of habitats.

'Concealment' does not always mean hiding within trees or grasses. The deer at the top of this page was totally unaware of the tiger that was so close by.

Amur tiger:

Strangely, the Amur tiger has not developed a coat colour which allows it better concealment in snowy areas, though the coat of that subspecies does have more white in it than that of other subspecies.

White tigers:

White Bengal tigers, like the one shown above, would have a very slim chance of survival in the wild even without the interference of man. This is due to the colouring which has made them so popular, but which significantly reduces the tiger's ability to conceal itself from potential prey.

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