History of Tigers
Historically speaking tigers has inhabitated most of Asia, parts of Russia and the huge areas between the Aral and Caspian Seas. There are eight subspecies of tigers. Unfortunately three of them were eradicated in the last century - the Javan tiger, the Bali tiger and the Caspian tiger.
The different types of tigers or subspecies are usually defined by their body size, the characteristics of their skull and their coloration and striping patterns. This division might prove inadequate compared to DNA analysis since morphological distinctions usually have been based on a few specimens. Research has also revealed that the variation of some characteristics overlaps between subspecies from time to time making distinctions difficult.
Tigers require quite large land areas for hunting, mating etc. According to both ecological analysis and model predictions of tiger densities, an average density of tigers from 3.2 to 16.8 in 100 km 2 is required for a tiger population to sustain. This area is closely related to the density of the tigers prey which of course wary from area to area. The requirement of tiger of large land areas in combination with habitat destruction is one of the main reasons why it’s difficult to uphold thriving populations.
