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living with tigers
Tiger Stories

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Fat and Happy (cont'd)
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Varty grabs his white baton and sets off walking with the pair of tigers, in hopes of locating the remains of the kill. He finds nothing. Next strategy: a process of elimination. We search for the wildebeest herd that the tigers had been stalking yesterday. We find all five animals present and accounted for. They are grazing peacefully on the far side of the enclosure.

Varty suspects the tigers killed something that they ate completely last night. It could be a porcupine, Varty says, thinking out loud, but probably not, because Ron is gorged and Julie had at least a helping of the kill. It must have been something more substantial; most likely, an ant bear, Varty concludes.

The sticky-tongued termite eater can reach 200 pounds, a wholly satisfying snack for a tiger. One of these thick-skinned nocturnal creatures no doubt made Ron work a bit for his dinner, but nothing like a wildebeest would. The ant bear's only defense is to plunge down its hole.

Julie slinks behind the vehicle, ready to begin the day hunting. She spies the wildebeest herd and goes into stalking mode. She actually slithers back under the vehicle and reappears on the other side, where there's better natural cover.

"Julie is a cat who likes to hunt," Varty observes, adding that hunger is not the only motivating factor for hunting. "There's also the element of fun."

An ibis sounds an alarm call. Julie makes a long-distance sprint at the herd, instigating Ron to join her. Varty is surprised that Ron rouses to the occasion, given his bulging stomach. The pair again miss getting close enough to take down any of the wildebeest.

A storm is bearing down on the veld. Ominous clouds gather and lightning flashes in the hills. The tigers, with their warm, weatherproof coats, do well hunting in the rain, Varty says. They have an advantage because the prey species put their heads down against the wet wind; they're less alert to movement, sounds and smells.

It'll be another night in the hunting area for Ron and Julie. A dark and stormy night, at that. We'll check back in on them early tomorrow.

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