The Bengal tiger is a tiger from a specific population of the Panthera tigris tigris subspecies that is native to the Indian subcontinent.^[3] It is threatened by poaching, loss, and fragmentation of habitat, and was estimated at comprising fewer than 2,500 wild individuals by 2011. None of the Tiger Conservation Landscapes within its range is considered large enough to support an effective population of more than 250 adult individuals.^[1] India‘s tiger population was estimated at 1,706–1,909 individuals in 2010.^[4] By 2018, the population had increased to an estimated 2,603–3,346 individuals.^[5] Around 300–500 tigers are estimated in Bangladesh, 220–274 tigers in Nepal and 103 tigers in Bhutan.^[1][6][7]

The tiger is estimated to be present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late Pleistocene, for about 12,000 to 16,500 years.^[8][9][10]

The Bengal tiger ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today.^[2][11] It is considered to belong to the world’s charismatic megafauna.^[12] It is the national animal of both India and Bangladesh.^[13] It used to be called Royal Bengal tiger.^[14]

The Bengal tiger’s coat is yellow to light orange, with stripes ranging from dark brown to black; the belly and the interior parts of the limbs are white, and the tail is orange with black rings. The white tiger is a recessive mutant of the tiger, which is reported in the wild from time to time in Assam, Bengal, Bihar, and especially from the former State of Rewa. However, it is not to be mistaken as an occurrence of albinism. In fact, there is only one fully authenticated case of a true albino tiger, and none of black tigers, with the possible exception of one dead specimen examined in Chittagong in 1846.^[21]

Males and females have an average total length of 270 to 310 cm (110 to 120 in) and 240 to 265 cm (94 to 104 in) respectively, including a tail of 85 to 110 cm (33 to 43 in) long.^[2][22] They typically range 90 to 110 cm (35 to 43 in) in height at the shoulders.^[22] The standard weight of males ranges from 175 to 260 kg (386 to 573 lb), while that of the females ranges from 100 to 160 kg (220 to 350 lb).^[2][22] The smallest recorded weights for Bengal tigers are from the Bangladesh Sundarbans, where adult females are 75 to 80 kg (165 to 176 lb).^[23]

The tiger has exceptionally stout teeth. Its canines are 7.5 to 10 cm (3.0 to 3.9 in) long and thus the longest among all cats.^[24] The greatest length of its skull is 332 to 376 mm (13.1 to 14.8 in).^[17]

(From Wikipedia, June 2021)