The history of the white tigers of Rewa.

Chronology of the white Bengal tiger up until the death of Mohan:

1820: A white tiger was displayed at Exeter Change.

1915: White tiger cub captured by Maharajah Gulab Singh of Rewa. Upon its death it was gifted to King George V as a sign of India's loyalty to the crown.

25th May 1951: A forest labourer reported sighting a white tiger cub.

26th May 1951: The cub's mother and two of its three siblings were shot and killed.

27th May 1951: Maharaja Martand Singh captured Mohan.

30th May 1951: The cub escapes and a large party goes out to recapture it.

26th February 1952: A normal coloured tigress named Begum is captured.

10th April 1955: Begum produced a litter of a male and two female cubs. All were orange, as were all the cubs in her subsequent two litters.

December 1957: Mohan was mated with Radha, his four-year-old daughter from the second litter with Begum.

20th October 1958: Radha produced an all-white litter of a male and three female cubs. They were christened Raja, Rani, Sukeshi and Mohini. Subsequently:

The male and one female (Raja and Rani) were gifted to the National Zoological Gardens in New Delhi.

Mohini was transported to Washington D.C.

Sukeshi was kept for mating with Mohan and remained with him until he was withdrawn from breeding. Her son showed no interest in mating with her and after six years without success she too was transferred to the National Zoological Gardens in New Delhi where she died on the 2nd February 1975.

May 1964: Raja and Rani were mated. Rani gave birth to two white cubs, a male and a female. She mauled both and the female died. The male, 'Tippu' lost his tail and was hand-raised with great difficulty.

August 1965: Two white cubs born to Rani. Both die due to neglect.

19th December 1965: Three white cubs are born to Rani. They were left in her care for just over a month, at which point she lost interest and they were hand-raised. The female dies at the age of 17-months and one male dies on the 17th April 1967 during shipping to the United States.

Breeding of Rani continued and she produced a total of 20 cubs, all white.

19th December 1969: Mohan died aged 19 years 7 months. All captive white tigers descend from Mohan, which explains why they are so genetically inbred.

White Tiger History - Page 1&2: The First Known White Tigers | 3: White Tigers In The U.S.A. |
4: Chronology Of The White Bengal Tiger

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