International Tiger Day 2015

A century ago, there were around 100,000 tigers throughout their range. Today, an estimated 3,000 to 4,000 exist in the wild. Three out of eight subspecies are already extinct. Still with us are the Sumatran, Siberian, Bengal, Malayan, Indochinese and South Chinese tiger. This latter, pictured above, can only be found in captivity.

Tigers have lost about 93 percent of their natural habitat due to human activities such as agriculture and the growth of cities around their habitats. Some tiger colonies still survive on small islands - but that leads to a high risk of inbreeding. The two white Bengal tigers above, however, represent a natural - and healthy - variant of the striped species.

One of the world's largest tiger populations lives in the Sundarbans, in Bangladesh and eastern India, on the northern coast of the Indian Ocean. This area is home to Bengal tigers and protected coastal regions. But rising sea levels caused by climate change threaten to wipe out these forests and the last remaining habitat for this tiger population.

Tigers like to hunt in solitude, and generally search for food 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 to back of the head. They've even been known to kill humans.

In contrast to most other members of the cat family, tigers love water. They are strong swimmers, and often cool off in pools or streams. They may also kill prey in the water - so think twice before going swimming around these felines!

Tigers are 100 percent carnivorous. Deer, wild pigs, water buffalo and antelopes are their favorite prey. They can also hunt sloth bears, dogs, leopards, crocodiles and pythons, as well as monkeys and hares. Humans are not their preferred choice - but tigers can attack a person if they feel threatened.

In tropical climates, the mating season runs from November to April. In more temperate regions, this takes place during the winter. Tiger cubs take around 103 days to come to the world, and there are normally three or four in each litter. Young tigers emerge from the den to follow their mothers around once they are around eight weeks old, and become independent at a year and a half.

Since people and tigers are competing for space, wild tigers pose a major problem for communities living around those areas. If forests shrink, there is not enough prey. This forces the tigers to hunt domestic livestock from their human neighbors. In retaliation, tigers get often killed or captured.