Caspian tiger
Caspian tiger | |
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Tiger from the Berlin Zoological Garden, 1899[1]
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Extinct (1970)
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Carnivora |
Suborder: | Feliformia |
Family: | Felidae |
Subfamily: | Pantherinae |
Genus: | Panthera |
Species: | P. tigris |
Subspecies: | P. t. tigris
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Population: | †Caspian tiger |
Historical distribution |
The Caspian tiger was a
Results of a phylogeographic analysis evinces that the Caspian and Siberian tiger populations shared a common continuous geographic distribution until the early 19th century.[5]
Some Caspian tigers were intermediate in size between Siberian and Bengal tigers.[3][6][7]
It was also called Balkhash tiger,
Taxonomy
Felis virgata was a
In 1929, Reginald Innes Pocock subordinated the tiger to the genus Panthera.[12] For several decades, the Caspian tiger was considered a distinct tiger subspecies.[6][13]
In 1999, the
At the start of the 21st century,
In 2015, morphological, ecological and molecular traits of all putative tiger subspecies were analysed in a combined approach. Results support distinction of the two evolutionary groups continental and Sunda tigers. The authors proposed recognition of only two subspecies, namely P. t. tigris comprising the Bengal, Malayan, Indochinese, South Chinese, Siberian and Caspian tiger populations, and P. t. sondaica comprising the Javan, Bali and Sumatran tiger populations. Tigers in mainland Asia fall into two clades, namely a northern clade formed by the Caspian and Siberian tiger populations, and a southern clade formed by populations in remaining mainland Asia.[15]
In 2017, the Cat Specialist Group revised felid taxonomy and now recognizes the tiger populations in continental Asia as P. t. tigris.[2] However, a genetic study published in 2018 supported six
Characteristics
Fur
Photographs of skins of Caspian and
Size
Male Caspian tigers had a body length of 270–295 cm (106–116 in) and weighed 170–240 kg (370–530 lb); females measured 240–260 cm (94–102 in) in head-to-body and weighed 85–135 kg (187–298 lb).
Some individuals attained exceptional sizes. In 1954, a tiger was killed near the
Skull size and shape of Caspian tigers significantly overlap with and are almost indistinguishable from other tiger specimens in mainland Asia.[18]
Distribution and habitat
In the 19th century, tigers occurred in:
- the Hakkari Provinces in eastern Turkey; in the Hakkari Province tigers possibly occurred up to the 1990s.[19][20] The only confirmed record in Iraq dates to 1887 when a tiger was shot near Mosul, which is considered to have been a migrant from southeastern Turkey.[19] There are also claims of historical tiger presence in the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system in Iraq and Syria.[21][22]
- the extreme southeast of the Caucasus, such as in hilly and lowland forests of the
- in the region of the Alborz Mountains.[23]
- Ili Rivers; all along the southern shore of Lake Balkhash and northwards into the southern Altai Mountains, and to southeastern Transbaikal or Western Siberia in the east.[3][24] In China, it occurred in the Tarim, Manasi River and Lop Nur basins.[1]
Its former distribution can be approximated by examining the distribution of
Throughout the late Pleistocene and Holocene, the Caspian tiger population was likely connected to the Bengal tiger population through corridors below elevations of 4,000 m (13,000 ft) in the Hindu Kush, before gene flow was interrupted by humans.[26]
Local extinction
The demise of the Caspian tiger began with the Russian colonisation of Turkestan during the late 19th century.[27] Its extirpation was caused by several factors:
- Tigers were killed by large parties of sportsmen and military personnel who also hunted tiger prey species such as wild pigs. The wild pig range underwent a rapid decline between the middle of the 19th century and the 1930s due to overhunting, natural disasters, and diseases such as swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease, which caused large and rapid die-offs.[3]
- The extensive reed beds of tiger habitat were increasingly converted to cropland for planting
- The tiger was already vulnerable due to the restricted nature of its distribution, having been confined to watercourses within the large expanses of desert environment.[25]
Until the early 20th century, the regular
Last sightings
In Iraq, a tiger was killed near Mosul in 1887.[1][19] In Georgia, the last known tiger was killed in 1922 near Tbilisi, after taking domestic livestock.[30][1] In China, tigers disappeared from the Tarim River basin in Xinjiang in the 1920s.[30][1] In Azerbaijan, the last known tiger was killed in 1932; however, tigers were allegedly sighted in later years in the Talysh Mountains.[31]
In Turkey, a pair of tigers was allegedly killed in the area of
In
In
Behaviour and ecology
No information is available for home ranges of Caspian tigers. In search for prey, they possibly prowled widely and followed migratory ungulates from one pasture to another.
Disease
Two tigers in southwestern
Conservation
In 1938, the first protected area
In Iran, Caspian tigers had been protected since 1957, with heavy fines for shooting. In the early 1970s, biologists from the Department of Environment searched several years for Caspian tigers in the uninhabited areas of Caspian forests, but did not find any evidence of their presence.[7]
In captivity
A tiger from the Caucasus was housed at Berlin Zoo in the late 19th century.[1] DNA from a tiger caught in northern Iran and housed at Moscow Zoo in the 20th century was used in the genetic test that established the Caspian tiger's close genetic relationship with the Siberian tiger.[5]
Reintroduction project
Stimulated by recent findings that the Siberian tiger is the closest relative of the Caspian tiger, discussions started as to whether the Siberian tiger could be appropriate for
While the restoration of the Caspian tiger has stimulated discussions, the locations for the tiger have yet to become fully involved in the planning. But through preliminary ecological surveys it has been revealed that some small populated areas of Central Asia have preserved natural habitat suitable for tigers.[41]
In culture
In the Roman Empire, tigers and other large animals imported from Africa and Asia were used during gladiatorial games.[42] In the Taurus Mountains, stone traps were used to capture leopards and tigers.[43]
In
See also
- Tiger populations
- Mainland Asian populations
- Sunda island populations
- Prehistoric tigers: Panthera tigris soloensis
- Panthera tigris trinilensis
- Panthera tigris acutidens
- Holocene extinction
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Nowell, K. & Jackson, P. (1996). "Tiger, Panthera tigris (Linnaeus, 1758)" (PDF). Wild Cats: status survey and conservation action plan. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. pp. 55–65.
- ^ a b Kitchener, A. C.; Breitenmoser-Würsten, C.; Eizirik, E.; Gentry, A.; Werdelin, L.; Wilting, A.; Yamaguchi, N.; Abramov, A. V.; Christiansen, P.; Driscoll, C.; Duckworth, J. W.; Johnson, W.; Luo, S.-J.; Meijaard, E.; O'Donoghue, P.; Sanderson, J.; Seymour, K.; Bruford, M.; Groves, C.; Hoffmann, M.; Nowell, K.; Timmons, Z. & Tobe, S. (2017). "A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group" (PDF). Cat News (Special Issue 11): 66–68.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Heptner, V. G. & Sludskij, A. A. (1992) [1972]. "Tiger". Mlekopitajuščie Sovetskogo Soiuza. Moskva: Vysšaia Škola [Mammals of the Soviet Union. Volume II, Part 2. Carnivora (Hyaenas and Cats)]. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution and the National Science Foundation. pp. 95–202.
- ^ a b Jackson, P. & Nowell, K. (2011). "Panthera tigris ssp. virgata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T41505A10480967.
- ^ PMID 19142238.
- ^ JSTOR 3504004.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-85043-946-2.
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- ^ Illiger, C. (1815). "Überblick der Säugethiere nach ihrer Verteilung über die Welttheile". Abhandlungen der Königlichen Preußischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin. 1804−1811: 39–159. Archived from the original on 2019-06-08. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
- ^ Satunin, K. (1906). "Die Säugetiere des Talyschgebietes und der Mugansteppe" [The mammals of the Talysch and the Mugan steppe regions]. Mitteilungen des Kaukasischen Museums. 2: 263–394.
- ^ Schwarz, E. (1916). "Zwei neue Lokalformen des Tigers aus Centralasien" [Two new local races of the Tiger from Central Asia]. Zoologischer Anzeiger. 47 (12): 351–354.
- ^ Pocock, R. I. (1929). "Tigers". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 33 (3): 505–541.
- OCLC 62265494.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-521-64835-6. Archived from the originalon 2012-04-23.
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- ^ a b Can, Ö. E. (2004). Status, conservation and management of large carnivores in Turkey (PDF). Strasbourg: Convention on the conservation of European wildlife and natural habitats.
- ^ Hatt, R. T. (1959). The mammals of Iraq. Ann Arbor: Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan.
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- ^ Faizolahi, K. (2016). "Tiger in Iran – historical distribution, extinction causes and feasibility of reintroduction". Cat News (Special issue 10): 5–13.
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- ^ ISBN 9780521648356.
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- ^ ISBN 978-0-06-016574-1.
- ^ a b c d Jungius, H.; Chikin, Y.; Tsaruk, O. & Pereladova, O. (2009). Pre-Feasibility Study on the Possible Restoration of the Caspian Tiger in the Amu Darya Delta (PDF). WWF Russia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
- ISBN 978-0-415-29744-8.
- ^ a b Ognev, S. I. (1935). "Carnivora (Fissipedia)". Mammals of the U.S.S.R. and adjacent countries. Vol. 2. Washington D. C.: National Science Foundation.
- OCLC 797893515.
- ^ Johnson, K. (2002). "The Status of mammalian carnivores in Turkey" (PDF). Endangered Species Update 19 (6): 232–237.
- ^ Baytop, T. (1974). "La presence du vrai tigre, Panthera tigris (Linne 1758) en Turquie". Säugetierkundliche Mitteilungen. 22 (3): 254–256.
- ^ Kumerloeve, H. (1974). "Zum Vorkommen des Tigers auf türkischem Boden". Säugetierkundliche Mitteilungen. 22 (4): 348–350.
- ^ Ministry of Forest of Turkmenistan (1999). The Red Data Book of Turkmenistan. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Turkmenistan Publishing House.
- ^ UN Department of Humanitarian Affairs (1997). Afghanistan Weekly Update No. 215. UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Report).
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- ISBN 9780275971403. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
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- ^ Kāshifī, H. V. (1854). The Anvari Suhaili; or the Lights of Canopus Being the Persian version of the Fables of Pilpay; or the Book Kalílah and Damnah rendered into Persian by Husain Vá'iz U'L-Káshifí. Translated by Eastwick, E. B. Hertford: Stephen Austin.
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- ^ Gawlikowski, M. (2006). "Palmyra". Current World Archaeology. 12: 32.
Further reading
- Abbott, J. (1856). A Narrative of a journey from Heraut to Khiva, Moscow and St. Petersburgh. Vol. 1. Khiva: James Madden. p. 26.
- Schnitzler, A.; Hermann, L. (2019). "Chronological distribution of the tiger Panthera tigris and the Asiatic lion Panthera leo persica in their common range in Asia". S2CID 202040786.
External links
- "Caspian tiger (Panthera tigris virgata)". IUCN Cat Specialist Group.
- "The Great Cats of Asia: Caspian Tiger". wildtiger.org. Archived from the original on 2013-10-04.
- "The Caspian Tiger". lairweb.org.nz.
- "Turanian tiger reintroduction". World Wildlife Fund Russia. Archived from the original on 2020-05-14. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
- Richard Freeman (November 2018). "Animals & Men". reddit.