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

[GrizzlyClaws]

I do agree with tigerluver's theory.

During the Pleistocene China, there was a large swamp area in the central part that served as a natural geographical barrier between North China and South China, and the swamp area only disappeared very recently like 1000 BC. And no wonder that Amur tiger managed to colonize Manchuria via Central Asia, not via China, because the path was blocked by the swamp area.

The southern form of the Wanhsien group must once have a lot of interactions with the Sunda form since there was a land bridge when the sea level was lower.

The southern form of the Wanhsien tiger got heavily altered via the intermixture with the Sunda form, while the northern form of the Wanhsien tiger still remained relatively isolated from their southern cousins and without the admixture from the Sunda form, that's why they look more distinct and primitive.

I still think that both Panthera youngi and the Manchurian mandible could likely represent the unaltered northern form of the Wanhsien tiger. Reply