Hobbies And Interests
Range
White tigers were once reasonably widespread in the wild, appearing predominately in India but also in nearby countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh. Thanks to the threats, such as trophy hunting, the white tigers' range has seriously diminished. The range of these animals is now limited to zoos and wildlife centers in countries such as India and the U.S., where they've become a popular attraction. The lineage of white tigers in the U.S. derives from a single creature imported from India. White tigers in captivity are frequently crossbred with Bengal and even Siberian tigers in the hopes of extending the population of the animal.
Environment in Wild
In its natural habitat in the wilderness, the white tiger is accustomed to living across a variety of different environments, requiring only prey and a decent supply of water. Before disappearing from the wild, white tigers were found across different types of forest and jungles, such as mountainous woodlands and tropical forests. White tigers also lived in mangrove-filled swamplands.
Behavior in Wilderness
The white tiger's behavior in its natural environment is different to how it lives in captivity. When white tigers roamed jungles and forests, these big cats established areas up to 75 square miles in size as their territory, marking these places using urine and by scratching trees. These areas would be defended against male white tigers but might overlap with those of females, even outside of the mating season. Generally solitary, white tigers are skilled at moving quietly up to prey and thus surprising it.
Environment in Captivity
At the time of publication, with the vast bulk, if not all, of the remaining white tiger population in captivity, these creatures are more accustomed to man-made environments, which still need to be large, and white tigers require plenty of meat for their survival. The exact nature of their enclosure depends on the establishment where they're kept. In Las Vegas, for example, entertainers Siegfried &Roy have built an open-air habitat for the white tigers they own. This enclosure includes replica rocky terrain and a swimming pool for the tigers' use.
Problems in Environment
Deforestation, where humans have removed the natural habitat of tigers, coupled with excessive hunting, have, at the time of publication, all but removed white tigers from the wilderness. Even in captivity, white tigers face threats. Nandankanan zoo, in India, lost 13 white tigers in April 2001 thanks to an outbreak of the illness trypanosomiasis, spread by tsetse flies.