Did you know: Time is running out for tigers

Today is International Tiger Day, commemorated annually to raise awareness over this magnificent cat facing extinction in only a decade.

Tigers are the largest existing cat species and preys mostly on deer and wild boar. Out of the carnivores, only polar and brown bears are larger.

Their front paws are strong enough to kill or at least break bones. Tiger cubs are born blind, relying on the smell of their mothers. Half the cubs of the litter survive.

Factors threatening tigers include loss of habitat, being killed by humans as they pose a threat and poaching for tiger parts and products. Tigers may become extinct within the decade in the wild, but there are some in captivity.

Tigers are one of the most endangered cats. As of last year, there were less than 4 000 tigers in the wild according to the WWF. Three subspecies are already extinct out of the nine.

“When a man wants to murder a tiger he calls it sport, when a tiger wants to murder him he calls it ferocity.” – George Bernard Shaw