Malayan Tiger
The Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni, Malay: Harimau Belang), found in the southern and central parts of the Malay Peninsula, until 2004 was not considered a subspecies in its own right. The new classification came about after a study by Luo S-J et al. from the Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, part of the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Recent counts showed there are 600-800 Malayan tigers in the wild, making it the most common tiger subspecies other than the Bengal and the Indochinese tigers. It is, nevertheless, still an endangered sub-species.
Malayan Tiger
Malayan Tiger Cubs
Malayan Tiger
Malayan Tiger in jungle
The Malayan tiger, along with the Sumatran tiger, is perhaps the smallest extant subspecies of tiger. Its stripe pattern is similar to the Indochinese tiger but its size is closer to the Sumatran tigers, with an average weight of 120 kg for adult males and 100 kg for females. Male Malayan tigers measures around 237cm in length from head to tail and female Malayan tigress around 200cm in length.
Malayan tigers prey on deer, wild boar and livestock. Tigers in Taman Negara also prey on sun bear. Tigers occur at very low densities 1.1-1.98 tigers per 100km² in the rainforest as a result of low prey densities, thus in order to maintain viable tiger populations of minimum of 6 breeding females, reserves need to be larger than 1000km².
When the Malayan tiger was accepted as a sub-species of the tiger family, the news was warmly received in Malaysia. However, there was soon debate over the scientific naming of the Malayan tiger. Researchers proposed a name to recognize the work by Peter Jackson (zoologist) with big cats: Panthera tigris jacksoni. However, the Malaysian Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria (MAZPA) and the Government of Malaysia protested, arguing that Malaysia should have been consulted over the naming of its national icon. Malaysia holds that the naming should reflect the geographical region, Malaysia. In Malaysia, therefore, the Malayan tiger is known as Panthera tigris malayensis.
The Malayan tiger is depicted in the coat of arms of Malaysia, symbolising the government and appears in various heraldry of Malaysian institutions such as Maybank, Proton and FAM. It symbolizes bravery and strength to Malaysians. The tiger has been given various nicknames by Malaysians, notably "Pak Belang," which literally means "Uncle Stripes." Pak Belang features prominently in folklore as one of Sang Kancil's ("The Mouse Deer's") adversaries.
Estimated number left in the world = 600-800
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