Both animals belong to the Panthera Thigris species, but the Bengal tiger is known by its scientific name Panthera Tigris Tigris, while the Siberian tiger is called by its scientific name Panthera Tigris Altaica. At first glance they are very similar animals, but they have very marked differences.
If you are not an animal expert or well documented, you can easily confuse them. That is why on our site we want to share with you the differences between these two animals, ranging from the place where they live, their diet and their adaptation to the environment, among others.
Keep reading and also discover some curiosities of these beautiful animals, which are positioned as the largest cats in the world. Don't wait any longer and see the differences between the Bengal tiger and the Siberian tiger that you can read below
Differences between size and weight
If you look at length as a reference point, the largest tiger is the Siberian. In the past, Siberian tigers were also the heaviest, but today, due to problems such as food shortages due to poaching, some specimens can weigh less than the Bengal tiger.
Next we will show you in more detail the weight and size of both tigers, using the WWF data and the National Geographic:
- The Siberian tiger is between 1.9 and 2.3 m long, not including the tail, which is approximately 1 m long. Their weight is between 180 and 300 kilograms.
- The Bengal tiger measures between 1.5 and 1.8 m in length not including the tail, which measures between 0, 5 and 1m. The weight of this feline is between 110 and 225 kilograms.
As we have told you, the weight of the Siberian tiger has decreased, so that an adult male specimen weighs around 190 kilograms, not 300 kilograms, as in the last century. The causes of the decrease in weight, aside from poaching, are also due to global warming, which directly affects the habitat of these animals.
The weight of a Bengal tiger can vary greatly, as it will depend on environmental factors, especially the weather, which inevitably influences its physical characteristics. If we look at the weight as a point of reference, the Bengal tiger would be considered the largest, however, it is an open question that generates many debates among specialists.
In the image you can see a copy of the Bengal tiger.
Differences in where they live
The differences can also be seen depending on where it is found each species, for example the Bengal tiger can be found in India, Bangladesh and Nepal, in the different parks of these countries since in the wild there are very few existing specimens.
The Siberian tiger, on the other hand, can be found in the extreme southeast of Russia and on the border between China and Russia. In earlier times it could be found in countries such as Mongolia and Korea, however due to hunting and the Asian black market, its distribution area is now reduced.
As for the climate, the Bengal tiger inhabits hot desert areas and grasslands where the climate is humid and cool. The Siberian tiger, for its part, is adapted to live in extreme cold conditions, living in snowy places for example. But we can also find it in grassy plains, swampy areas and in grassy areas.
The photograph shows a Siberian tiger in a climate of extreme cold.
Are there dietary differences between these tigers?
In terms of diet there are rather similarities rather than differences between these two species, both are carnivorous animals and devour practically any animal they they are capable of knocking down. The Bengal tiger hunts peacocks, buffaloes, monkeys, wild boars and antelopes, among others. The Siberian tiger also has a carnivorous diet, devouring wild boar, deer, lynx and even bear-sized animals.
Both can kill their prey with one bite, if it is a small animal, if it is a medium or large animal It knocks them down with one claw and then closes its powerful jaws on the victim's neck, until it suffocates.
Is color a distinctive feature of these tigers?
Continuing with the differences between the Bengal tiger and the Siberian, the color of the coat is a characteristic that does not distinguish one from the other very well, since they are very similar The Bengal tiger is reddish-orange in color, with black or gray stripes and white on the underside.
The Siberian tiger, on the other hand, is reddish-brown in color, a little paler than its Bengal relative, but almost imperceptible to the untrained eye. It also has the characteristic dark or black stripes that run vertically on its sides and shoulders, which form rings on its tail. The volume of fur in the case of the Siberian tiger is greater than that of the Bengal, in order to protect them from the cold.
There is also the false belief that the white tiger and the Siberian tiger are the same, something completely false. The white color is a genetic mutation that results in white fur instead of orange or reddish brown, a mutation present in both species of tiger.
There is also an even rarer mutation, the one known as the golden tiger, which is also present in both species. In this case, the mutation affects the traditional black stripes, which in this case tend to be reddish, a slightly stronger color than the background skin color. Golden tigers have only been seen in captivity. For all this, the color does not differentiate one species from another, since they are very similar in that sense.
The image shows a specimen with the mutation known as the golden tiger.
How to tell the difference between the Bengal tiger and the Siberian tiger?
In summary there are some ways in which these two species can be differentiated, the first is the place where they live In the case of the Bengal tiger is an animal that prefers hot climates and humid and cool climates, the Siberian tiger on the other hand is an animal of cold climate.
The second way in which these felines can be differentiated is the long animal, the Bengal being much larger than the Siberian, therefore, is an animal that looks slimmer than its relative that lives in Russia. Weight is also a distinguishing feature, the Siberian tiger being much heavier and therefore more robust to the eye than its cousin that lives in India.
Another way you can tell these animals apart is that the Siberian tiger has much more fur than the Bengal, thanks to its adaptation to the cold. All these are differences that are a bit difficult to distinguish and that even knowing them will not give us the certainty of knowing if it is one species and another and even confuse them with any of the other four species that still exist.
In the photograph you can see a specimen of a white tiger, a mutation that can occur in both species.
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