DNA samples of Bengal tigers polluted by genes of the Siberian Tiger

[GuateGojira]

Even if we consider the idea/theory of Dr Kitchener, that all mainland tigers are in fact one "subspecies", the true is that the Bengal and the Amur tigers are the LESS related of all the groups. Both Bengal and Amur tiger populations born from the original population of Indochina at about 15,000 years ago, the Bengal ones invaded India about 12,000 years ago, while the Caspian-Amur invaded the center and west of Asia about 10,000 years ago (the largest the distance, shorter the time), the definitive separation of the Amur group was just about 200 years, surely caused by the human intervention, just like the separation of the Sundarbans tigers from the mainland Indian population.

These two tiger groups, although represent the largest specimens of the species in the Holocene, are very different morphologically speaking, specially in the skull. In fact, it will be more plausible to mix a Bengal with an Indochina tiger than with an Amur one. It is also interesting that there was probably an intermix between the Amur and the South China tiger, even Mazák was not sure of the clear "separation area". Besides, very few specimens were collected in the south of Manchuria (popularly know as territory of the South China tiger). Interestingly, the largest tiger from the Central part of China was a male of 190 cm in head-body and 190 kg, which is as large as an average Amur tiger. Sadly, there are to few skulls to get a conclusion here.

Finally, the case of Tara, like I said before, is very old and that supposed DNA mix is already finished. Other thing, like @Shardul said, India is not a metapopulation, but a group of "islands" of tigers surrounded by an ocean of people. A young tiger traveling across this ocean had an impossible task and most of those young ones end dead.
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