White Tigers

What is your opinion on White Tigers.

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    108
I first saw white tigers when I visited Bristol Zoo in 1968. Along with my first okapis, they were the animals I especially wanted to see. As far as I know, there is only attempt to introduce captive tigers into the wild and that is in South Africa (In South Africa, Chinese tigers claw their way back to life - The Globe and Mail). Other than that, zoos keep tigers because people expect to see them in zoos, as they are among the most popular zoo animals; this is a similar excuse to why there are so many meerkats in zoos. They are basically there to attract visitors and make money for zoos. I doubt if there are many people who are interested in tigers and do not know that they are endangered in the wild. There are many endangered species that could be kept in zoos, but aren't.

Basically, zoos have enough tigers to ensure that the tiger is safe from extinction, regardless of what happens in the wild. While I can understand the idea of keeping subspecies pure, the reality is that there will be little scope in reintroducing tigers to the wild, especially in areas with high human populations. I doubt if many visitors are bothered about which subspecies a tiger belongs to and if visitors prefer seeing white tigers to other tigers, so be it. There is a problem with genetic abnormalities, but white tigers are not the only captive animals that suffer from these. Colin Tudge suggested mixing tiger genes (Science: When it's time to call a tiger a tiger: Colin Tudge looks at the complexities of survival for the world's endangered species - Science - News - The Independent) and there may be some scope in replacing tigers with other endangered species that need less space and could be reintroduced into the wild.
 
Pertinax said:
And where is it from? It looks like it could possibly be a pure Indian tiger as it is short-furred with a 'slim' tail and small head.
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From European Taxidermists Competition held in Longarone, Italy (2010).
Those beauties must be preserved, not cremated.
 
I'm not against displaying them, since they're already here, but I don't think they should be bred any further. Apparently all white tigers are mixes of different subspecies; if that's the case, they don't have any conservation value. Zoos should save their room for tigers that could potentially be used to help the wild population.
 
ThylacineAlive said:
I believe it's mainly Bengal and Amur Tigers.

~Thylo:cool:
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Yeah, that's what I keep hearing. If they were pure I wouldn't have so much problem, but... Zoos won't usually breed orange "generic" tigers because they're considered useless for conservation, so I don't really see why they should be breeding white tigers if they're all "generic" as well.
 
Basically, the Zoos and private breeders messed up with White tigers- the white gene became more important than the Tigers themselves- so the genetic purity was lost with indiscriminate crossing taking place, purely designed at creating more White tigers.
 
Let them be phased out with some dignity. They hold no conservation value whatsoever and are nothing more than a curiosity.

I don't blame the animal. What I cannot stand are those who continue to pursue a breeding program and the amount of media coverage it generates when cubs are born. It's sends out the wrong message to the public.

Personally, I get more wonder and enjoyment from seeing the, remaining, subspecies. We've already bastardised the planet beyond belief (it's only just beginning to dawn on the majority the differences in lion subspecies) it's high time the majority of establishments were singing from the same hymn sheet and, if not, being held accountable.
 
Heres one for you then...although I basically believe that white Tigers are a waste of valuable zoo capacity,I once suggested to the owner of a struggling small zoo that he get them to boost visitor numbers.He did,and they did!Without them the zoo might not be here today-and im not sure Sumatrans or Amurs would have been available to him at that time anyway[or since].
 
Tim Brown said:
Heres one for you then...although I basically believe that white Tigers are a waste of valuable zoo capacity,I once suggested to the owner of a struggling small zoo that he get them to boost visitor numbers.He did,and they did!Without them the zoo might not be here today-and im not sure Sumatrans or Amurs would have been available to him at that time anyway[or since].
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Like I said Tim, I've nothing against the animal. It's those FEW that breed from them under the foil of "conservation" that really grind my gears! I don't think I've ever been anywhere that says what a white tiger actually IS, or put it into context with regards wider tiger conservation issues.

I just think the general public would have a better understanding of tiger conservation if it was explained better. You send out the wrong signals if you breed them, though they're certainly not comparable to ligers or tigons!
 
As long as the animal is healthy I don't see what the big deal is. I go to zoo's for my enjoyment not to be lectured to about conservation. Oh and I find it kind of sickening people talking about killing the animals. I'm more concerned with individual animal cruelty than some notion of "conservation".
 
Panthera1981 said:
I just think the general public would have a better understanding of tiger conservation if it was explained better. You send out the wrong signals if you breed them, though they're certainly not comparable to ligers or tigons!
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I just wish the last pure Indian white tigers in the UK had been used to recreate normal orange Indian tigers here, but by then that would have been difficult without at least one(imported) Orange tiger being used, as white x white only produces more whites.
 
Tim Brown said:
Heres one for you then...although I basically believe that white Tigers are a waste of valuable zoo capacity,I once suggested to the owner of a struggling small zoo that he get them to boost visitor numbers.He did,and they did!Without them the zoo might not be here today-and im not sure Sumatrans or Amurs would have been available to him at that time anyway[or since].
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And I rather think we all know to whom you refer :) it's certainly paid off in terms of bringing in extra visitors to my knowledge.

Panthera1981 said:
I don't think I've ever been anywhere that says what a white tiger actually IS, or put it into context with regards wider tiger conservation issues.
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You'll be pleased to hear that Hamerton Zoo does actually have signage explaining that white tigers are merely a colour morph, and not a distinct species.
 
Only just discovered this thread (I had forgotten about "General Zoo Discussion" and just been looking at UK threads!). When I was a child Bristol's White Tigers were regarded as wonders of the zoo world. How times change.
 
Of course, if Bristol's white tigers were around now they *would* be wonders of the zoo world, being pure Bengals.
 
Parrotsandrew said:
When I was a child Bristol's White Tigers were regarded as wonders of the zoo world. How times change.
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They caused a real stir, being the only ones outside India apart from Mohini, a female from the first litter, who had previously been sent to Washington in the USA. So (virtually) no one in the UK/Europe had ever had the chance to see one and they were a real curiosity.

Bristol were experiencing an economic downturn at the time, with visitor numbers declining. When the Maharajah of Rewa offered the two surviving cubs from his third litter of Whites - he too was suffering economic problems- Bristol snapped them up, despite the enormous price. And it paid off for them too.

As TLD comments above, nowadays the stir would be that they were pure Indian, rather than being White!
 
White Tigers have no conservation value

White tigers only occur rarely as a natural morph of P. t. tigris. Those in captivity are highly interbred hybrids. They often have genetically-related health problems. They have no conservation value. They are bred exclusively for commercial reasons to attract a gullible public that doesn't know better. It should be banned.
 
White tigers are not the only animals that "are bred exclusively for commercial reasons to attract a gullible public that doesn't know better." While many zoos stress that they exist to protect endangered species, there seem to be lots of exhibits for meerkats and the like, even in Australia, where some native animal species exist in a few zoos and are not allowed to be exported. As many wild tigers exist in countries with increasing human populations and decreasing natural habitat, the idea of non-white tigers being of conservation value is spurious, so I suggest that many zoos "keep tigers for commercial reasons to attract a gullible public that doesn't know better".
 
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