Scott Hanko
Malayan Tiger
The Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni, Malay: Harimau Belang), found in the southern and central parts of the Malay Peninsula, is a subspecies of tiger found in Thailand and Malaysia. Until 2004, it was not considered a subspecies in its own right. The new classification came about after a study by Luo S-J et al. from the Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, part of the U.S. National Cancer Institute.
Recent counts showed there are 600–800 Malayan tigers in the wild, making it the most common tiger subspecies other than the Bengal and perhaps also the Indochinese tigers. It is, nevertheless, still an endangered subspecies.
The Malayan tiger, along with the Sumatran tiger, is perhaps the smallest extant subspecies of tiger. Its stripe pattern is similar to the Indochinese tiger but its size is closer to the Sumatran tigers, with an average weight of 120 kg for adult males and 100 kg for females. Male Malayan tigers measure around 237 cm in length from head to tail and female Malayan tigress around 200 cm in length.
Malayan tigers prey on sambar deer, barking deer, wild boar, bearded pigs and serow. Tigers in Taman Negara also prey on sun bear and elephant calves. Whether their principal prey includes adult gaur and tapir is unknown. Occasionally, livestock is also taken; however, tiger predation reduces the numbers of wild boar which can become a serious pest in plantations and other croplands. Studies indicate that in areas where large predators (tigers and leopards) are extinct, wild pigs are over 10 times more numerous than in areas where tigers are still present.
Tigers occur at very low densities 1.1-1.98 tigers per 100 km² in the rainforest as a result of low prey densities, thus in order to maintain viable tiger populations of minimum of 6 breeding females, reserves need to be larger than 1000 km². Biological/ecological research on the Malayan tiger is still in infancy. For example, information on dietary preference, morphological measurements, demographic parameters, social structure, communication, home range sizes, dispersal capabilities are all lacking.
A genetic analysis of the phylogeny of tigers in 2004 split the Indochinese subspecies into two distinct subspecies: the Indochinese tiger and the Malayan tiger and the authors argue that the captive populations for these two subspecies should be managed in a similar way to the other recognized subspecies but it is unclear how this information will be used by the zoo community.
When the Malayan tiger was accepted as a subspecies of the tiger family, the news was warmly received in Malaysia. However, there was soon debate over the scientific naming of the Malayan tiger. The formal description of the subspecies gave it the name Panthera tigris jacksoni in honour of tiger specialist Peter Jackson.
However, the Malaysian Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria (MAZPA) and the Government of Malaysia protested, arguing that Malaysia should have been consulted over the naming of its national icon. Malaysia holds that the naming should reflect the geographical region, Malaysia. In Malaysia, therefore, the Malayan tiger is known as Panthera tigris malayensis.
Tiger Mountain
Bronx Zoo New York
Malayan Tiger
The Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni, Malay: Harimau Belang), found in the southern and central parts of the Malay Peninsula, is a subspecies of tiger found in Thailand and Malaysia. Until 2004, it was not considered a subspecies in its own right. The new classification came about after a study by Luo S-J et al. from the Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, part of the U.S. National Cancer Institute.
Recent counts showed there are 600–800 Malayan tigers in the wild, making it the most common tiger subspecies other than the Bengal and perhaps also the Indochinese tigers. It is, nevertheless, still an endangered subspecies.
The Malayan tiger, along with the Sumatran tiger, is perhaps the smallest extant subspecies of tiger. Its stripe pattern is similar to the Indochinese tiger but its size is closer to the Sumatran tigers, with an average weight of 120 kg for adult males and 100 kg for females. Male Malayan tigers measure around 237 cm in length from head to tail and female Malayan tigress around 200 cm in length.
Malayan tigers prey on sambar deer, barking deer, wild boar, bearded pigs and serow. Tigers in Taman Negara also prey on sun bear and elephant calves. Whether their principal prey includes adult gaur and tapir is unknown. Occasionally, livestock is also taken; however, tiger predation reduces the numbers of wild boar which can become a serious pest in plantations and other croplands. Studies indicate that in areas where large predators (tigers and leopards) are extinct, wild pigs are over 10 times more numerous than in areas where tigers are still present.
Tigers occur at very low densities 1.1-1.98 tigers per 100 km² in the rainforest as a result of low prey densities, thus in order to maintain viable tiger populations of minimum of 6 breeding females, reserves need to be larger than 1000 km². Biological/ecological research on the Malayan tiger is still in infancy. For example, information on dietary preference, morphological measurements, demographic parameters, social structure, communication, home range sizes, dispersal capabilities are all lacking.
A genetic analysis of the phylogeny of tigers in 2004 split the Indochinese subspecies into two distinct subspecies: the Indochinese tiger and the Malayan tiger and the authors argue that the captive populations for these two subspecies should be managed in a similar way to the other recognized subspecies but it is unclear how this information will be used by the zoo community.
When the Malayan tiger was accepted as a subspecies of the tiger family, the news was warmly received in Malaysia. However, there was soon debate over the scientific naming of the Malayan tiger. The formal description of the subspecies gave it the name Panthera tigris jacksoni in honour of tiger specialist Peter Jackson.
However, the Malaysian Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria (MAZPA) and the Government of Malaysia protested, arguing that Malaysia should have been consulted over the naming of its national icon. Malaysia holds that the naming should reflect the geographical region, Malaysia. In Malaysia, therefore, the Malayan tiger is known as Panthera tigris malayensis.
Tiger Mountain
Bronx Zoo New York