Read Peter Jackson's expert answers to your questions on the following topics:
Tiger size
Tiger types
Tiger travel
Cat aggression
Cat DNA
Cheetah classification
Lion differences
Cat speed
Tiger tolerance
Tiger defenses

---

Q: On Tiger Tolerance

I have an assignment in my science class. I need information on the temperature tolerance of tigers.

A: Tigers do not tolerate great heat. In the tropics, they will lie up to their necks in ponds in the daytime during the hot season, when temperatures can be around 100 F. In the Russian Far East, Amur (Siberian) tigers survive temperatures as low as minus 50 F. Animals are adapted to their habitats, e.g., the Amur tigers grows a thick coat in winter, which it sheds in the summer, while tigers in the tropics have short coats.

---

Q: On Tiger Defenses

What are the tiger's main defenses?

A: Teeth and claws are the tiger's main defenses, but acute hearing warns them of potentially dangerous approaches and they can quietly move away or conceal themselves, often so that they can view the possible threat.