Extinct Tiger Breeds

Caspian Tigers (Panthera tigris virgata)

• Caspian tigers, also known as Turanian tigers, once lived in western and central Asia. They had reddish-orange coats and black or brown stripes. In the winter, they often had long white fur on the underside of their stomachs and on their chins. In the summer months, this fur, and the rest of their coats, was shorter. The demise of Caspian tigers is largely due to habitat destruction. They lived alongside rivers in reedy areas. Deforestation and river drainage left many Caspian tigers without homes. People also killed them for their skins or as pest control. People have not seen evidence of Caspian tigers since 1972.

Javan Tigers (Panthera tigris sondaica)

• Javan tigers were orange with black vertical stripes. Javan tigers have been officially extinct since 1994, though the last Javan tigers most likely died in the 1980's. They were indigenous to the Indonesian island of Java, where the natives had little respect for them. Hunting by humans was the main cause of the Javan tiger extinction. Conservationists and the Indonesian government tried to save the tigers from extinction by setting up and guarding a preserve when their numbers were low. However, they did not catch the problem soon enough to stop it.

Bali Tigers (Panthera tigris balica)

• Bali tigers were the first subspecies of the Panthera tigris species to disappear. They were indigenous to Bali. Deforestation, human inhabitation of Bali and hunting caused the population of tigers in Bali to dwindle and then disappear in 1937. These tigers were the smallest of all the tiger subspecies and were orange with black stripes.

Surviving Subspecies and Conservation

• The six remaining subspecies of tiger include the following: Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris), Indochinese tigers (Panthera tigris corbetti), Sumatran tigers (Panthera tigris sumatrae), South China tigers (Panthera tigris amoyensis), Siberian tigers (Panthera tigris altaica) and Malayan tigers (Panthera tigris jacksoni). All of these tiger subspecies are endangered, with South China tigers and Sumatran tigers being critically endangered. Conservation currently consists of habitat protection and captive breeding in some cases.