In the snowy, inhospitable regions of Russia’s Far East, you will find Siberian tigers. Unfortunately, they are also highly endangered, so even if you are within their range, you probably won’t see one.
However, in some very rare cases, you might encounter one in the middle of a snowy road just like this:
If this happened to you, would you be scared? Considering there are currently only 562 wild Siberian tigers in Russia, you should consider yourself lucky.
Siberian tigers are the largest and heaviest of all the big cats. Males are generally bigger than females, and they can be quite huge. They can measure up to 140 inches (350 centimeters) “over the curves”, equivalent to 130 inches (330 centimeters) “between the pegs”. (Side note: “Over the curves” is a measurement over the tiger’s body from nose to rump that accounts for the curvature of its body. “Between the pegs” is a straight measurement from nose to rump that traces a straight line.) Fully grown males can weigh up to 701 pounds (318 kilograms), and they can attain a tail length of about 39 inches (1 meter).
Because of their size and beautifully patterned fur coats, Siberian tigers are frequently targeted by poachers, who have driven their populations into decline. Today, the surviving population of Siberian tigers has very low genetic diversity, and efforts are underway to repopulate them.
