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

[peter]

TIGERS AND BEARS IN RUSSIA TODAY - VII


I think PC is close here, Brotherbear. Although an ambush would be an initial advantage, it wouldn't be decisive in an encounter between a male Amur tiger and a male Ussuri bear. The reason is adult brown bears, and males in particular, usually have a thick layer of muscles in the area a tiger would target (the neck). A tiger wouldn't be able to get to the vertebrae with one bite in a large male brown bear. Although every discussion on this topic is speculative by nature, there's plenty of circumstantial evidence to suggest it would take a lot more to kill an adult male brown bear. I propose to use two examples.


1 - SYSOEV

Sysoev is one of the very few who saw a number of fights between adult tigers and adult brown bears. In one case, the fight ended undecided. In another, a male tiger killed an adult female and in two others the male tigers were defeated. At least one of the two male tigers was killed. Many think this incident happened in 1960. Sysoev later wrote a story about an encounter between a male tiger and a male bear called 'Amba'. Although the story probably is fictional, chances are he used things he actually saw. I'll post the story in some time. For now, I'll try to paint the picture that emerged from the story.

Sysoev wrote about the life of a male tiger in eastern Russia. I'm not sure, but I think the tiger was a youngish adult. He wrote how the tiger hunted, killed and ate a wolf. Later, he killed a male Himalayan black bear. In winter, the tiger had to walk long distances to find the animals he preferred most (deer and wild boars). Some of the animals he killed were confiscated by a large male brown bear. The bear was so large, the tiger wouldn't have had a chance in a fight. He had no option but to accept it. But when another, slightly smaller, male tried to rob him of a wild boar he had killed, the tiger decided to defend his kill.

The bear was a large male, but weightwise below par as a result of a lack of food. Maybe the bear was a 'Schatun' and maybe it was just after hibernation. I don't remember. Anyhow. The tiger first threatened the bear, who wasn't impressed. Then a fight started. In the first stages, the tiger was able to get behind the bear. Every time he succeeded, the neck was targeted. In spite of the severe wounds he inflicted, he couldn't get to the vertebrae because the bear was able to get out of the grip of the tiger using his weight.

After some time, the tiger tired and the bear got his chance. Although he crushed the front paw of the bear, the tiger wasn't able to break the hold of the bear. He died as a result of suffocation. Wild Amur tigers killed by wild Ussuri bears, as far as I know, seldom perish as a result of a crushing blow or crushed ribs. Most are strangled, which means the bear in question had to be a strong animal. Chances are it was a male in most cases. This is one reason why I don't buy the general view on no engagements between male tigers and male bears, but that's another story.   

When Sysoev was director of the Chabarowsk Natural History Museum, a diorama was constructed. It shows a male brown bear and a male Amur tiger engaged in battle. Both photographs (the second was posted to show both animals were large) were first posted by Grahh, who posted on AVA some years ago. He now has his own site called 'Shaggy God':

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

Is a male brown bear capable of performing the feat described above? I think so. Male Amur tigers average 420-430 pounds, whereas male Ussuri bears average just below 600 pounds, with some well over that mark. A tiger would need a lot of skill and power to overcome a bear of that size. When a bear, on the other hand, gets a hold, it would be difficult to break out of it.

He's another photograph of a captive male Ussuri bear. It shows a large and robust animal, well capable of engaging an adult male Amur tiger. The photograph was first posted by Warsaw, also a former AVA-poster:

*This image is copyright of its original author

One more to finish with. The bear below was killed by a hunter. The angle used, as always in hunter photographs, shows a large bear. I don't think it was exceptional, but it shows male Ussuri bears are robust animals not to be trifled with:

*This image is copyright of its original author

 2 - BART SCHLEYER

Bart Schleyer worked for the WCS (the Siberian Tiger Project). In the USA, he often went out on his own. Alaska and Canada. Wild country. One fateful day, he was killed in Alaska. They think it was a brown bear, but wolves also used his body to feed on. Some time after his death, an article was published. One could also say it was a kind of obituary. I posted parts of it on this thread (see post 54).

Schleyer knew about Amur tigers and bears. He often followed the tracks of tigers in the snow. At times, he found a dead bear. Schleyer was able to get to the story in most cases. He said most bear killers were experienced male tigers who had about a hundred pounds on their victims. Every attack was a hit and all bears were killed with a bite to the base of the neck. The bears killed in that way, however, were immatures or females and they faced a heavier male tiger.

Most bears killed in this way died without a fight. In a number of cases, however, there had been a fight. Schleyer didn't offer details, but my guess is the fights were a result of the size of the bear. The larger the bear, the more difficult it is to kill with a single bite. I remember two cases discussed in other articles. In both, the females targeted were estimated between 150-200 kg. (330-440 pounds) and both only succumbed after a prolonged fight. 

Adult brown bears, as was stated before, usually have a thick layer of large muscles in the neck. This means it's very unlikely even a large male tiger would be able to kill a large bear with one bite. This assumption was confirmed in the two cases mentioned. Many think the fights Schleyer mentioned were a result of ambushes gone wrong. My guess is the bears targeted were too large to kill with a single bite.

Anyhow. Here's part of the article posted before again. It's about the part in orange:

*This image is copyright of its original author

        

3 - AMBUSHES, OPEN FIGHTS, RUMOURS AND TRAINERS

Many think a tiger's best chance in a fight is an ambush, but Clyde Beatty wrote his large male Russian bear usually got whipped when he attacked the Amur tigresses. This means tigers apparently do quite well in encounters. After a number of bad experiences, his Russian bear decided for a different approach. The tigress he finally killed was ... ambushed. The attack also was remarkable in that he didn't bite the tigress multiple times, as bears often do, but held on. It was this, Beatty thought, that saved him. At that time, Beatty thought bears wouldn't stand a chance in a fight with a tiger.

Later, he changed his opinion, but every encounter he reported on was between a large bear and a small tiger. He said tigers usually spent themselves quickly and added a lot more that underlined there was no love lost between Beatty and tigers. Could have been a result of a bad experience when he was young. Beatty was targeted by a tigress and saved by the bell, I mean a male lion. After that experience, tigers were done for.

Beatty, to underline his opinion, reported on two fights between his female brown bear 'Doris' and two tigers (a male and a female) in different interviews. Doris killed both within a few months while defending herself. Beatty talked about it at every opportunity, but forgot to add Doris, at about 700 pounds, was as large as they come, whereas the two tigers were half her size or less (...). I saw a photograph of Doris. I wouldn't know about the 700 pounds, but there's no question she was a very large female.

Beatty, because he wrote books and knew about public relations, influenced public opinion. The consequence is many still think tigers quickly spend themselves and stand no chance in a fight against a 'calculator' (all lions and bears). I'm not going to discuss the crap he offered, but I will say many of his 'views' were a result of distortions born from what I consider to be a strong dislike.

I talked to many trainers over the years. They were long interviews with dedicated and unbiased people who had worked with big cats and bears for many years. I also talked to a director of a facility situated in the southern part of the Netherlands. In the facility, a kind of training school, many big cats, brown bears and polar bears were trained. Most were sold to circuses when they had 'graduated'. The facility featured in a documentary I saw. The director was Klant Hagenbeck. He was related to the other Hagenbecks and as experienced as they come. What did he and the others had to say about big cats and bears?

One is there is no love lost between tigers and brown bears. Two is brown bears, in contrast to what many think, are calculators. Three is they, in a one-on-one, often suffer against a big cat of similar size, especially tigers. The reason is tigers are faster, more agile and more aggressive. Four is brown bears, although powerful, very intelligent and confident, often overestimate themselves. After a beating, they, as a result of pride, often try to get even in some way. Many trainers said adult brown bears try to surprise (ambush) the tiger they hate. Sometimes, they succeed and sometimes they pay.

Five is the rumours about endurance are just that. Tigers are able to fight for a very long time. The problem is they, as aggressors, often overheat, especially against heavier and agile opponents. This is the reason they need short breaks. This is different from 'spending themselves quickly'. One could say tigers are 'interval-fighters' and be right.

At times, a bear is able to use a break. One reason is they have the energy needed (defence is less consuming than offence). Another is bears are exceedingly intelligent animals. They know when to act or not. When you forget to lock the cage, they will know and let you visit them. It will be your last visit. Before you go to the land of no return, they will have had a lot of fun. In this respect, they are close to (male) lions.

Six is tigers and bears almost compare to tigers and lions. Size often is important and defence is less costly than offence. Ambushes are the best way to conserve energy. An even better way is to avoid an all-out.  

All in all, I think Krechmar could be about right regarding wild Amur tigers and Ussuri brown bears. He said not one dominates the other in a fysical fight. Large male bears can displace a male tiger, but it doesn't happen often. The reason they succeed at times is they, as non-hunters, need the protein because of their size. They are willing to risk injury, whereas tigers can hunt again. But Amur tigers are vindictive animals, many say. At times, males clash. The outcome of a fight between an average-sized male tiger and an averaged-sized male Ussuri bear, I think, is anybody's guess. This, regarding the difference in weight (430 vs 590 pounds), says something about the ability of an Amur tiger. A real big bear, as Sysoev said, would get it his way more often than not, but there are not that many. These 'Equalizers' are few and far between.

The only thing I really agree with regarding both animals is inborn animosity. That's why the bear who escaped the Canadian facility decided to demolish the tigress first before returning home and that's the reason why the tiger who killed a cagehand in Beatty's circus decided to pay brown bear 'Doris' a visit before continuing his escape. Both tigers were killed quickly, but the bears had a distinct advantage in size.

Also remember wild tiger 'Boris'. He was one of five youngsters recently released into the wild. All five were about 18 months of age when they were released and all had collars, enabling researchers to monitor their progress. At first, the researchers were happy to find the youngsters tried to avoid brown bears. But the peace didn't last long. Tiger 'Boris', in spite of his young age, recently killed a bear. I don't know what bear was killed and how it was done, but it tells you all you want to know about tigers and bears.

A very long post, which wasn't intended. My apologies. I just wanted to say it's always a bit different than you think it is, Brotherbear. That's why you have to use authentic information only to get to an opinion. An experienced trainer also has something of interest to offer. Also remember opinions differ. Same for researchers. In some regions, tigers and bears avoid each other. In others, they do not. Tigers and bears, for that reason, is tricky business.

As for ambushes. I hope you now know tigers aren't the only ones who specialize in ambushes. Bears are pretty good at it as well. Ambushes save energy, but not when the opponent is a large and strong animal. It's an initial advantage, but not decisive in a fight between large males. It is, in other words, not very likely the large male bear killed in the Sungari River Basin was killed in an ambush. My guess is there would have been a prolonged fight and the tiger was able to win it. One reason could have been his size. Maybe the Sungari River tiger also was an 'Equalizer'. Reply