ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)

[Apex Titan]

The Amur Tiger Center just uploaded a new video, of an interview with CEO Sergey Aramilev, about who would win in a fight between a tiger or a bear:

For better English subtitles translation, you can also watch this video on their Facebook page: 

https://www.facebook.com/amurtigercenter...402425997/


(I'll paraphrase what he says to get better clarity for the readers, although I'm using some of his words and phrases he states in the interview)

Aramilev on tigers vs Himalayan black bears:

He states; big male Himalayan black bears can weigh up to 250 kg in weight, and is normal for them to weigh 200 kg. In principle, the Himalayan bear is a worthy opponent for a tiger, however, the tiger is a born killer and phenomenal predator, and nature created him to be this. The tiger is a lone animal and he hunts alone, and hunts quite diverse. Due to this fact, he states that the tiger is a more developed and smarter animal than the bear.

Bears on the other hand, are primitive (clumsy) hunters, he states, whereas the tiger has high intelligence. He notes, that all of this is related to hunting, the tigers body is prepared for murder and he is a complete predator. Although the Himalayan black bear does eat meat on occasion, he specializes in eating cones, berries and acorns etc.

However, he states that the Himalayan black bear is quite a physically developed animal and would seem to be a worthy opponent of the tiger. But conflicts show, in all known cases of fights between tigers and Himalayan black bears, the tiger always defeats the bear. The tiger, physically, has a clear advantage over the Himalayan black bear, he states.

He then mentions that some tigers specialize at hunting Himalayan bears, and tigers especially hunt bears in autumn, when bears have gained weight. Fat bears, is really "comfortable" food for tigers, he states. He also says, tigers know exactly where to get 'delicious' (bulked up) Himalayan black bears. Overall, for the tiger, the Himalayan black bear is a food object, he states.

He says, that in some cases, when the bear flee's up a tree, the tiger climbs up the tree and pulls the bear down. There are some unique cases, when the bear chooses a tree with soft wood (bark) to save its life, which is 20-30 centimeters in diameter, and the tiger slowly bites away at the bark of the tree, bringing the bear closer to him, the bear then eventually falls down with the tree, and the tiger kills it. He also notes that the tiger is more agile than a bear.

Aramilev on tigers vs brown bears:

He states; the brown bears of the Far East - Kamchatka and Ussuri brown bears are much larger than the European brown bears. In Primorye and Khabarovsk regions, a brown bear (Ussuri) weighing 500-600 kg is not considered to be rare. (The youtube subtitle translation says it is considered a rarity) He says that the Ussuri brown bear is a huge bear, and is more predatory than the Himalayan black bear.

The brown bear does not disdain hoofed animals, but its difficult for the brown bear to hunt them, he's not very fit (athletic), he states. He's not adapted to this diet. The brown bears diet consists of fish, berries, acorns and pine nuts. He says, of course the brown bear is not as perfect at hunting/killing as the tiger, but still, he is also a bit of a predator. The brown bear became a "herb-eating vegetarian", he states.

Tigers and brown bears of equal strength, usually avoid serious fights with each other. However, fights do sometimes occur at kill-sites, where both the tiger and bear have been victorious in some cases. These fights can often result in infected and inflamed wounds, which can lead to the death of both predators.

He says, the tigers huge canines, over 7 cm's each, penetrate deep into a bears flesh, and when the bears wound closes up, bacteria remains, inflammation happens, sepsis and even blood infection, which often leads to death. Infected wounds can also fatally affect tigers also, he states.

But overall, he says that the tiger is a more trained and accustomed killer. Every once in 10 days it kills big animals and does this every year. In his conclusion he says (the answer everyone's waiting for) therefore ....

"An adult male tiger will always kill any bear, but a tigress or young tiger can lose to a large male brown bear."

Unfortunately he didn't talk about tiger predation on brown bears.

CONCLUSIONS:

1) Large male Himalayan black bears of the Russian Far East can weigh up to 250 kg, and 200 kg being a normal weight for them.

2) Tigers especially hunt Himalayan black bears in autumn, when bears have significantly gained weight. And considering the fact that scientific studies confirm that tigers readily prey on full-grown adult male black bears and hunt individuals of all ages and genders, this strongly indicates that tigers, who often kill adult bears, and mainly target bulked up bears in autumn, hunt and kill even huge male black bears weighing 190-250 kg. This also confirms what Baikov stated, that large tigers (which weigh well over 200 kg) hunt and kill bears of almost the same weight. (Bears well over 200 kg)

3) Only young tigers or tigresses can lose to a big male brown bear, but an adult male tiger will always kill any brown bear in a fight, no matter how big. Which means that Aramilev thinks that an adult male tiger will always kill even a giant 500-600 kg brown bear in a fight, due to the tiger being a far superior killer and complete predator.

4) A fight between a tiger and Himalayan black bear is a mismatch in favor of the tiger. In all known cases of fights, the tiger always kills the bear. Physically, the tiger has a clear advantage over any Himalayan black bear.

5) According to Aramilev, the tiger is a more developed and smarter animal than the bear.

6) The fact that tigers bite away at the soft bark of tree's, so the bear falls down, proves that tigers are highly intelligent animals.

7) Tigers and brown bears of equal strength, (referring to adult males of both species) usually avoid serious fights with each other. However, fights do sometimes occur at kill-sites, where both the tiger and bear have been victorious in some cases. These fights can often result in infected and inflamed wounds, which can lead to the death of both predators. Reply