Tiger Habitats Grasslands and Jungle

 Where do tigers live?  

Known as a tiger habitat the home of the tiger is varied but limited. Being an ambush hunter it needs to hide or camouflage well in order to pounce on its prey. In India, the big cats thrive in dense jungles and tall grasslands often called elephant grass. They are incapable of making a long chase for a hunt unlike the lion and the hunting methodology is to stalk prey from hidden confines make a chor chase or rush and pounce on the neck. The 2.5-inch canines rupture the jugular veins upon the impact and the weight of the predator brings the prey down and helps pin it to the ground. 

The animal is perfectly at home in grasslands as it is in the forests. The height of the tiger rarely exceeds 2.5 feet while the length may cross over 9.5 feet including the head and tail. The medium height enables it to crouch amid grass and stalks its prey before pouncing upon it. Thus the medium height helps in hunting effectively.  

If you come across a big male tiger on the road you will then realize the medium height and how closely it hugs the ground. The predator is large with big males weighing as much as 250 kg in India. The females generally weigh between 100 to 180 kg. 

Often on a tiger safari, the carnivore is an exciting spectacle as it walks in open grasslands neighboring the jungle. I came across Neelam tigress at Kanha National Park as it walked across the huge cross-section of a meadow with medium grass and a few scattered bushes.  Most of the visitors seek this kind of encounter when on a wildlife safari in the reserves. 

                                                                  Tiger Walking in Grassland

A walk-in short crop grass accords a clear vision to the spectators and to the filmmakers and photographers as well. When the predator walks in the dense bush in the jungle the sight is equally exciting but often cryptic as the bush mars the sight. Nevertheless, the beautiful jungle canopy with a huge cat sliding through is a treat to watch.  

                                                                     Tiger Walking in Forest

In the reserves tourists often come across big tigers on the jungle road and they continue walking through the tourist jeeps busy with marking their territory.   This sighting is exciting with thrilling closeness and one has to keep reversing the jeep to keep moving forward. I once came across a huge dominant tiger on the road and we kept reversing throughout the drive as it came head-on. Full of tense moments and dangers, these head-on encounters are the most memorable encounters in the wild. 

                                                          Tiger Walking on Jungle Road                   

This enchanting predator cannot survive in open or in short-crop grasslands since it needs to be hidden in tall grass or dense forest canopy. This habitat preference limits its range and the animal needs the niche to survive. Coming from the cold climes of Siberia it needs plenty of waterholes and rivulets in its habitat and a high percentage of prey.  As a specialized hunter, the carnivore needs a good prey base comprising of deer although it literally eats anything that walks.  

In the tiger reserves the prey base, protection, and inviolate grounds are helping the tiger survive in India. Their number is now well over three thousand adults. 

These wild tigers were filmed in the reserves and not in the zoo. Please watch my YouTube videos and Subscribe!

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Uday Freelances as Naturalist in Central India. He is an avid birder and tiger enthusiast. He blogs on tigers, wildlife, and birds. He also writes on the environment and conservation.

Uday also provides SEO Services and Website Contents in English. He teaches Digital Marketing in Jabalpur in Summer Holidays.
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Contact: pateluday90@hotmail.com
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