Sumatran tiger
Sumatran tigers are critically endangered due to habitat loss, deforestation, human-tiger conflict, and poaching, but you can help by purchasing products that use sustainable palm oil.
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Physical features
Tigers have excellent hearing. It is thought that tigers use hearing and sight more than smell when hunting their prey. Their ears turn independently of each other and in an arc up to 180 degrees.
Tigers’ eyes are their primary sense organ and are essential for nocturnal hunting. They have binocular and color vision. Their vision is more powerful at night and hunting at night is more common than hunting during the day.
The tongue of all cats is covered with small rigid spines called papillae which make their tongues feel like sandpaper. In large cats, the papillae are formidable instruments. Although it is primarily a body-grooming tool, the tongue is an important part of the tiger’s feeding equipment. Their rough tongues can scrape the flesh off their prey.
Webbing between their toes enables Sumatran tigers to be very fast swimmers. They will often run hoofed prey, which is a much slower swimmer, into the water.
Each tiger’s stripe pattern is unique to that individual. The skin underneath is also striped.
Sumatran tigers have more stripes than other subspecies and their stripes are set closer together. Their fur is also a darker shade of orange than other tiger subspecies. This deeper shade helps the Sumatran tiger to blend into its tropical rainforest habitat.
Tigers are built for stalking prey. A mature tiger has hind limbs that are longer than the forelimbs, enabling them to jump vertically up to 16 feet and horizontally up to 27 feet. The two- to three-foot-long tail is used for balance.
Males usually weigh 200-308 pounds, and females weigh 180-240 pounds. From the tip of nose to the end of the tail, females reach up to seven feet long and males can reach up to eight feet long.
Range and Habitat
Range – The island of Sumatra in Indonesia
Habitat – Dense lowland rainforests but also into mountainous areas
Diet: Carnivore
Wild – Primarily wild pigs and deer, along with some fish, monkeys, cattle and tapirs
Zoo – Five to 10 pounds of commercially prepared feline diet daily, depending on their size and the season
Lifespan
Wild – 10-12 years
Zoo – 15-20 years; median life expectancy in AZA facilities is about 18 years.
Reproduction
Females are sexually mature between 3-4 years old.
Male tigers tend to compete locally for females in estrus. Mating may take place over 100 times during the female’s fertile days. A tigress is in heat every three to nine weeks but is fertile for only three to six days.
Gestation averages 103 days. Most litters consist of one to six cubs, born blind and weighing about 2 pounds. Cubs stay with their mothers for about two years.
Conservation: Critically Endangered
What’s the issue?
Major threats to the Sumatran tiger include habitat destruction, deforestation, human-tiger conflict, and poaching. Population surveys estimate there are only 400-700 individuals remaining in the wild.
Each year, millions of acres of rainforest in Sumatra are destroyed to make room for oil palm plantations. The expansion of these palm oil plantations was the main cause of the nearly 20% loss in Sumatran tiger habitat between 2000 and 2012.
How does this affect humans?
Tigers help manage populations of herbivore prey species that tend to assert pressure on plant communities. Tigers may be considered a keystone species due to their role as a top predator.
What is Zoo Atlanta doing to help?
Zoo Atlanta is part of the Sumatran Tiger Species Survival Plan® (SSP), which helps zoos share information, resources, and animals to maintain healthy, genetically diverse and demographically stable populations of endangered wildlife in human care.
Zoo Atlanta is a member of the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), working with stakeholders throughout the palm oil supply chain to improve sustainability.
Zoo Atlanta supported The Tiger Conservation Campaign during our 2017-2018 Quarters for Conservation program year. The Tiger Conservation Campaign prevents human-tiger conflict by constructing tiger-proof livestock pens in villages, increasing outreach and awareness, and helping local veterinarians respond with assistance for wild tigers caught in snares.
What can you do to help?
Use the Sustainable Palm Oil Shopping app to help you find products made by companies dedicated to improving the sustainability of their palm oil supply chain. Only products made by RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) member companies appear in the app. These member companies are committed to meeting the RSPO’s strict environmental and social criteria which help preserve habitat for wildlife like Sumatran tigers and support the livelihoods of local communities.
Can’t find a product or company you love on the app? Check their website for sustainability information and contact them to let them know this issue is important to you.
Interpretive Information
The Sumatran tiger is the smallest of the remaining subspecies of tiger.
A tiger can sleep up to 18 hours a day.
Tigers are solitary animals, maintaining and defending their individual territories. Tigers generally come together only to mate, or when a female is caring for her young.
Tigers communicate through vocalizations, visual signals, and scent markings. They scent mark by spraying urine mixed with an odorous, musky liquid on trees, rocks, grass, etc. Tigers grimace (called a flehmen response) when they come upon scent markings. The mouth is opened to expose the Jacobson’s organ that processes the scent chemicals.
Tigers are pretty good swimmers and spend a good bit of time in the water. They even use swimming as a tool for hunting. Tigers have been spotted fishing in lakes and rivers.
There are only six subspecies of tigers remaining: Bengal (Indian), Indochinese, Amur (Siberian), South China, Malayan, and Sumatran. Three subspecies are already extinct: Caspian, Javan, and Bali.
References
Association of Zoos and Aquariums. (2016). Tiger (Panthera Tigris) Care Manual [PDF file]. Retrieved April 24, 2020, from https://assets.speakcdn.com/assets/2332/tiger_care_manual_2016.pdf
Cheyenne Mountain Zoological Society. (n.d.). Palm Oil FAQs. Retrieved April 28, 2020, from https://www.cmzoo.org/conservation/orangutans-palm-oil/palm-oil-faqs/
Dacres, K. (2007). Panthera tigris. Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved April 24, 2020, from https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Panthera_tigris/
Fauna and Flora International. (n.d.). Sumatran Tiger. Retrieved April 24, 2020, from https://www.fauna-flora.org/species/sumatran-tiger
Lehnardt, K. (2019, August 15). 64 Magnificent Tiger Facts. Retrieved April 28, 2020, from https://www.factretriever.com/tiger-facts
Linkie, M., Wibisono, H.T., Martyr, D.J. & Sunarto, S. (2008). Panthera tigris ssp. sumatrae. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved April 24, 2020, from https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/15966/5334836
Mowatt, E. (2016). Sumatran Tiger. Retrieved April 28, 2020, from https://blog.wcs.org/photo/2016/07/18/tigers-smelling-in-high-def-bronx-zoo-flehmen/
National Geographic. (n.d.). Sumatran Tiger. Retrieved April 24, 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/s/sumatran-tiger/
Ogden, J. (2015). Wildlife Wednesday: Meet Malosi at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Retrieved April 27, 2020, from https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2015/09/wildlife-wednesday-meet-malosi-at-disneys-animal-kingdom/
San Francisco Zoo. (2007). Sumatran Tiger [PDF file]. Retrieved April 27, 2020, from http://sfzoodocents.org/notebook/FactSheets/MAMMALIA/CARNIVORA/TigerSumatran.pdf
Updated April 2020