14 DAY TRIAL // Male Amur tigers are well known for preferring solitude over the company of others, their mates and offspring included. In fact, these big cats more often than not abandon their sweethearts long before their cubs are born.
Still, it was not too long ago that researchers with the Wildlife Conservation Society chanced to catch a glimpse of a rare sight: a male Amur tiger exploring the woods in a remote corner of Russia together with its mate and their offspring.
This peculiar behavior was caught on film with the help of camera traps set in place in the Sikhote-Alin Biosphere Reserve. The resulting images, included in the video below, are the first of their kind ever obtained anywhere in the world.
The felines seemed quite at ease in each other's company
The tiger family was photographed when it happened to walk by a camera trap. Although such devices were installed both in the Sikhote-Alin Biosphere Reserve and in the Udegeiskaya Legenda National Park, it was only in the first of these protected areas that the big cats were spotted.
The first to walk by the camera trap and be caught on film was the tiger dad. Its sweetheart followed in its footsteps just a few seconds later and the pair's three cubs passed by the camera trap as well shortly after. The felines did not in the least seem to mind being in each other's company.
Thanks to these images, wildlife researchers now know that, be it only once in a while, male Amur tigers do look after their family and spend time with their cubs after they are born. As mentioned, such behavior was previously unknown to specialists.
“We have collected hundreds of photos of tigers over the years, but this is the first time we have recorded a family together. These images confirm that male Amur tigers do participate in family life, at least occasionally,” said researcher Svetlana Soutyrina.
Amur tigers are currently listed as an endangered species
Amur tigers, otherwise known as Siberian tigers, are a tiger subspecies chiefly populating Russia's Sikhote Alin mountain range. A few other such big cats are known to live in the southwest regions of the Primorye Province in the Russian Far East.
Back in 2005, when a range-wide survey was carried out, wildlife researchers announced that just 430-500 Amur tigers were left in the wild. Hence, the species was listed as an endangered one.
Despite efforts to protect the cats' natural habitat and halt hunting activities in their home forests, it is unclear whether the species has made a comeback in recent years. Soon enough, scientists will release the findings of another survey completed just last month and hopefully clear this mystery.
