Tiger is not just a word. It is a feeling, a surge of energy and a burst of power. As I try to find words to introduce this beautiful fire beast to the blog readers, I feel I should let the English poet, William Blake do the talking. For once, his poem on the tiger has always been my favourite.
Tiger! Tiger! burning bright
In the forest of the night
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?
And What shoulder, and what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? and what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the lamb make thee?
Tiger! Tiger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
In the forest of the night
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?
And What shoulder, and what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? and what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the lamb make thee?
Tiger! Tiger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
---William Blake
Fierce, terrifying, royal, imposing, graceful and muscular: there are more adjectives than these: but not even the most comprehensive of all dictionaries will have a perfect word to describe this most awesome animal. It is invincible: in all sense.
Unsurpassed Power
Who else, but the tiger can possess the power of 450 kilos of brute muscle, strong enough to bring down one or perhaps even two adult male buffaloes single handedly? A paw thump can weigh as much as 200 kilos, more than that of a lion which is (150 kgs). A tiger's bite force can be as powerful as 127 bfq whereas that of a lion is 112 bfq. Tigers run at the speed of 85 kmph and are excellent swimmers, making them perfectly adaptable to swamp conditions of the tropical Indian rainforests. They are also adaptable to the slicing Siberian cold and mountain footholds of Nepal. With such malleability, one can almost think that the epitome of all carnivore force is the tiger- only the tiger
A temperament to die for!
A tiger is not very temperamental and will not attack or behave aggressively just for the fun of it. A tiger prefers solitude. It dislikes noise and commotion and will make sure it's got it's territory. Tigers are known to avoid the company of members of their own species.
A true gentleman
Unlike the alpha male lions who always have the first and the biggest share of the kill, male tigers are generous givers. They share their kill with females and cubs. Tigresses do the same. Cubs and other family are given equal importance when it comes to sharing a kill.
Man eaters
It's no myth that tigers can turn man eaters. This goes true especially for tigers in the Indian sub continent, especially the Sunderbans swamp. It's not the old and debilitated ones, even the young and the agile ones can turn out to be man eaters. The reason is the water of Ganges that engulfs the entire Sunderbans area which carries human corpses and the tigers have gotten used to the taste of human flesh in their regular intake of water. Along with diminishing forest coverage and inhabitance of mankind in their neighbouring regions, it becomes natural for these tigers to become a mortal threat to human life.
Endangered species
It might sound unbelievable that these invincible machines of claws, jaws and paws face a morbid danger of complete wipe off. However, this is true. Tigers are fast becoming extinct. They face threat from creatures even more nasty and perilous than most forces of nature. These creatures are none other than human beings.
Human beings are known to poach tigers for their skin and nails which have been traded for billions of dollars. This poaching used to be quite rampant till the late twentieth century. Indian monarchs and British governors have been known to kill
Chinese aesculpian field has used tiger parts in traditional medicines as per the age old belief that tiger parts promote cure, enhance virility and replenish body's energy. Today, governments across the world have joined hands to stop poaching for various reasons whatsoever. Tiger breeding and saving projects have been actively undertaken all over the world and to our great happiness, the tiger population over Asia has had a considerable increase since the year 2009.
According to the recent survey, tiger numbers in India have increased from 700-800 to 1706.
Efforts need to persist on a consistent basis in order to ensure the safety of these magnificent creatures.
Nature is powerful indeed. If these beautiful fire creatures at the top of the food chain topple, it won't establish human supremacy over nature; rather it shall call for a doom in the natural balance that we humans will have to pay for. Conservation of forests (the natural habitat) is necessary to ensure the tigers live.
