Awesome science facts for kids

Let's discover the largest wild cats in the world - tigers facts here by this article:

The tiger is the largest member of the felid (cat) family. They sport long, thick reddish coats with white bellies and white and black tails. Their heads, bodies, tails and limbs have narrow black, brown or gray stripes. There were once nine subspecies of tigers: Bengal, Siberian, Indochinese, South Chinese, Sumatran, Malayan, Caspian, Javan and Bali. Of these, the last three are extinct, one is extinct in the wild, and the rest are endangered.

1) Tigers are the largest wild cats in the world. Adults can weigh up to 363kg - that's about the same as ten ten year olds! - and measure up to 3.3m!

2) Tigers are carnivores, eating only meat. They mainly feed on large mammals such as deer, wild pigs, antelope and buffalo. 

3) Tigers are solitary hunters, and generally search for food alone at night. They quietly stalk their prey until they are close enough to pounce - then they kill their victim with a bite to the neck or back of the head. Ouch!

Also see elephant facts

4) Unlike most members of the cat family, tigers like water. They are good swimmers and often cool off in pools or streams. 

5) When a tiger wants to be heard, you'll know about it, gang - because their roar can be heard as far as three kilometres away.

6) They may be big and heavy, but tigers are by no means slow movers. In fact, at full speed they can reach up to 65km/h!

7) These fierce felines have walked the earth for a long time. Fossil remains of tigers found in parts of China are believed to be 2 million years old. Yikes!

8) Every tiger in the world is unique - no two tigers have the same pattern of stripes.

9) Today, there are five subspecies of tiger: Bengal, South China, Indochinese, Sumatran and Siberian. Sadly, three subspecies of tiger have become extinct - Caspian, Bali and Javan.

10) Less than 100 years ago, tigers could be found throughout Asia. Sadly, hunting and habitat loss have put populations at risk, and today their range has been reduced to around 7% of its former size.

See more amazing animal facts