• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Animals / Why Do Tigers Have Stripes?

Why Do Tigers Have Stripes?

April 2, 2020 by Karen Hill

Along with lions, tigers are the largest members of the cat family. One of the most feared animals of the jungle, the tiger has no enemies except man. Tigers are native to the Asian continent.

tiger stripes

Although many peoples have legends to explain the tiger’s stripes, the reason is really the animal’s adaptation to its environment. This adaptation occurred over millions of years of evolution. The tiger’s stripes are its camouflage, an adaptation in most animals which serves to protect them.

You may wonder why tigers, the largest members of the cat family along with lions, should need to be camouflaged. After all, they are the most feared animals of the jungle and have no enemies except man. It is simply that tigers, as supreme hunters, live and hunt in tall grass and tangled undergrowth. By blending in with these areas, they can sneak up on their prey, undetected.

Most scientists believe that many wild animals are color blind, or do not see vivid colors. Instead, they see only shades. The tiger’s vertical stripes would then look like bands of shadow and light in the tall grass. The stripes break up and hide the outlines of its body as it hunts, making it hardly noticeable.

The leopard’s spots serve the same function. This animal hunts in bush country, and its spots help it blend in with clumps of plants and with leaves of trees which it climbs.

The tiger’s stripes may aid in making it the perfect hunter it is. But its beautiful striped coat is also one of the main reasons that the tiger has become an endangered species. The tiger is now protected in most Asian countries, but the numbers of tigers left in the wild are startlingly low.

Only 2,000 tigers roam wild in India today as compared to 40,000 at the turn of the century.

Related Facts

  • Why do Leopards have Spots and Tigers have Stripes for Camouflage But Lions Are Plain?
  • Why Are White Tigers an Endangered Species and How Many White Tigers Are Left in the Wild?
  • How Difficult is it to Breed Tigers in Captivity and Do Zoos Still Capture Tigers From The Wild?
  • Why Do Zebras Have Stripes?
  • Why are Zebra stripes black and white but the terrain in Africa isn't?
  • What Do the Stars and Stripes on the American Flag Represent and What Do the Colors Symbolize?
  • How do toothpaste companies get red and white stripes onto Stripe toothpaste?
  • Why do Tigers Mark their Territory by Peeing on Trees like Dogs and What Does its Urine Smell Like?
  • If a Group of Lions is Called a Pride, What is a Group of Tigers Called and Why?
  • Do Lions and Tigers Ever Meet in the Wild?
  • Do Tigers Attack People?
  • What Happens When Lions and Tigers Mate and What are the Hybrid Cross-Bred Offspring Called?

Filed Under: Animals

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Why Don’t Spiders Get Caught in Their Own Webs?
Next Post: Does the Giraffe Have a Voice? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2021 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy