Editing Tiger (section)

=== Hunting and diet ===
[[File:RANTHAMBORE TIGER RESERVE.jpg|thumb|Bengal tiger attacking a [[sambar deer]] in [[Ranthambore Tiger Reserve]]|alt=Tiger attacking a sambar deer from behind, pulling on its back]]
The tiger is a [[carnivore]] and an [[apex predator]]. [[Abundance (ecology)|Abundance]] and body weight of prey species are assumed to be the main criteria for the tiger's prey selection, both inside and outside protected areas.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Biswas, S. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Kumar, S. |author3=Bandhopadhyay, M. |author4=Patel, S. K. |author5=Lyngdoh, S. |author6=Pandav, B. |author7=Mondol, S. |year=2023 |title=What drives prey selection? Assessment of Tiger (''Panthera tigris'') food habits across the Terai-Arc Landscape, India |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |volume=104 |issue=6 |pages=1302–1316 |doi=10.1093/jmammal/gyad069}}</ref> It feeds mainly on large and medium-sized ungulates, with a preference for [[sambar deer]], [[Manchurian wapiti]], [[barasingha]], [[gaur]] and [[wild boar]].<!--Please do not add any more species to this sentence.--><ref name=Hayward>{{cite journal |last1=Hayward |first1=M. W. |last2=Jędrzejewski |first2=W. |last3=Jędrzejewska |first3=B. |year=2012 |title=Prey preferences of the tiger ''Panthera tigris''|journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=286 |issue=3 |pages=221–231 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.2011.00871.x |name-list-style=amp}}</ref><ref name=Steinmetz_al2021>{{cite journal |author1=Steinmetz, R. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Seuaturien, N. |author3=Intanajitjuy, P. |author4=Inrueang, P. |author5=Prempree, K. |year=2021 |title=The effects of prey depletion on dietary niches of sympatric apex predators in Southeast Asia |journal=Integrative Zoology |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=19–32 |doi=10.1111/1749-4877.12461 |pmid=32627329}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Variar, A. S. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Anoop, N. R. |author3=Komire, S. |author4=Vinayan, P. A. |author5=Sujin, N. S. |author6=Raj, A. |author7=Prasadan, P. K. |year=2023 |title=Prey selection by the Indian tiger (''Panthera tigris tigris'') outside protected areas in Indias Western Ghats: implications for conservation |journal=Food Webs |volume=34 |page=e00268 |doi=10.1016/j.fooweb.2022.e00268|bibcode=2023FWebs..3400268V }}</ref> It also preys opportunistically on smaller species like [[monkey]]s, [[peafowl]] and other ground-based birds, [[porcupine]]s and fish.<ref name=Mazak1981/><ref name=Miquelle/> Occasional attacks on [[Asian elephant]]s and [[Indian rhinoceros]]es have also been reported.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Karanth, K. U. |year=2003 |title=Tiger ecology and conservation in the Indian subcontinent |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=100 |issue=2 & 3 |pages=169–189 |url=http://repository.ias.ac.in/89489/1/50p.pdf}}</ref>
More often, tigers take the more vulnerable calves.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Karanth, K. U. |author2=Nichols, J. D. |name-list-style=amp |year=1998 |title=Estimation of tiger densities in India using photographic captures and recaptures |journal=Ecology |volume=79 |issue=8 |pages=2852–2862 |doi=10.1890/0012-9658(1998)079[2852:EOTDII]2.0.CO;2 |jstor=176521 |url=http://erepo.usiu.ac.ke/bitstream/handle/11732/758/Estimation%20of%20tiger%20densities%20in%20India%20using%20photographic%20captures%20and%20recaptures.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y |access-date=16 December 2021 |archive-date=27 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127044620/http://erepo.usiu.ac.ke/bitstream/handle/11732/758/Estimation%20of%20tiger%20densities%20in%20India%20using%20photographic%20captures%20and%20recaptures.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y |url-status=live}}</ref>
They sometimes prey on livestock and dogs in close proximity to settlements.<ref name=Mazak1981/> Tigers occasionally consume vegetation, fruit and minerals for [[dietary fibre]] and supplements.<ref name=Perry>{{cite book |author=Perry, R. |title=The World of the Tiger |year=1965 |publisher=Cassell |place=London |pages=133–134 |asin=B0007DU2IU}}</ref>

Tigers learn to hunt from their mothers, though the ability to hunt may be partially inborn.<ref name="Fàbregas">{{cite journal |last1=Fàbregas |first1=M. C. |last2=Fosgate|first2=G. T. |last3=Koehler |first3=G. M.|year=2015|title=Hunting performance of captive-born South China tigers (''Panthera tigris amoyensis'') on free-ranging prey and implications for their reintroduction |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=192 |pages=57–64 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2015.09.007 |bibcode=2015BCons.192...57F |hdl=2263/50208 |hdl-access=free |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> Depending on the size of the prey, they typically kill weekly though mothers must kill more often.<ref name=Sunquist2010/> Families hunt together when cubs are old enough.{{sfn|Thapar|2004|p=63}} They search for prey using vision and hearing.{{sfn|Schaller|1967|pp=284–285}} A tiger will also wait at a watering hole for prey to come by, particularly during hot summer days.{{sfn|Schaller|1967|p=288}}{{sfn|Thapar|2004|p=120}} It is an ambush predator and when approaching potential prey, it crouches with the head lowered and hides in foliage. It switches between creeping forward and staying still. A tiger may even doze off and can stay in the same spot for as long as a day, waiting for prey and launch an attack when the prey is close enough,{{sfn|Thapar|2004|pp=119–120, 122}} usually within {{cvt|30|m}}.<ref name=Sunquist2010/> If the prey spots it before then, the cat does not pursue further.{{sfn|Schaller|1967|p=288}} A tiger can sprint {{cvt|56|km/h|mph}} and leap {{cvt|10|m}};{{sfn|Schaller|1967|p=287}}{{sfn|Thapar|2004|p=23}} it is not a long-distance runner and gives up a chase if prey outpaces it over a certain distance.{{sfn|Schaller|1967|p=288}}

[[File:Tiger's killing wild boar.jpg|thumb|right|Two Bengal tigers attacking a [[wild boar]] in [[Kanha Tiger Reserve]]|alt=Two tigers attacking a boar]]
The tiger attacks from behind or at the sides and tries to knock the target off balance. It latches onto prey with its forelimbs, twisting and turning during the struggle and tries to pull it to the ground. The tiger generally applies a [[throat clamp|bite to the throat]] until its victim dies of [[strangulation]].<ref name=Mazak1981/>{{sfn|Thapar|2004|p=121}}{{sfn|Schaller|1967|p=295}}{{sfn|Mills|2004|p=24}} It has an average bite force at the canine tips of 1234.3 [[Newton (unit)|newtons]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Christiansen, P. |year=2007 |title=Canine morphology in the larger Felidae: implications for feeding ecology |journal=Biological Journal of the Linnean Society |volume=91 |issue=4 |pages=573–592 |doi=10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00819.x |doi-access=free}}</ref> Holding onto the throat puts the cat out of reach of horns, antlers, tusks and hooves.{{sfn|Thapar|2004|p=121}}{{sfn|Schaller|1967|pp=295–296}} Tigers are adaptable killers and may use other methods, including ripping the throat or breaking the neck. Large prey may be disabled by a bite to the back of the [[Hock (anatomy)|hock]], severing the tendon. Swipes from the large paws are capable of stunning or breaking the skull of a [[water buffalo]].{{sfn|Thapar|2004|p=126}} They kill small prey with a bite to the back of the neck or head.{{sfn|Schaller|1967|p=289}}<ref name=Sunquist2010/> Estimates of the [[Hunting success|success rate]] for hunting tigers range from a low of 5% to a high of 50%. They are sometimes killed or injured by large or dangerous prey like gaur, buffalo and boar.<ref name=Sunquist2010/>

Tigers typically move kills to a private, usually vegetated spot no further than {{cvt|183|m}}, though they have been recorded dragging them {{cvt|549|m}}. They are strong enough to drag the carcass of a fully grown buffalo for some distance. They rest for a while before eating and can consume as much as {{cvt|50|kg}} of meat in one session, but feed on a carcass for several days, leaving little for scavengers.{{sfn|Schaller|1967|pp=297–300}}