Tigers are big-game specialists. They live mainly on hoofed animals such as deer, wild boar and wild cattle, but they are also opportunists that will take monkeys, bears, leopards and even crocodiles.1World Wildlife Fund. What Are a Tiger’s Prey? From Deer to Wild Boar What fills a tiger’s menu shifts with where it lives and how much large prey is left, so a tiger’s diet also says a lot about how healthy its forest is.
The Large Hoofed Animals Tigers Depend On
Hoofed mammals include deer, wild pigs, buffalo and wild cattle. Across one large region of northern India, sambar, swamp deer, nilgai, chital, wild pig and livestock made up about 94% of tiger diet.2bioRxiv. What drives prey selection? Assessment of tiger food habits across the Terai-Arc landscape, India In a dry forest in western India, sambar made up about 47% and chital about 31% of what tigers ate.3Journal of Zoology. Prey abundance and prey selection by tigers (Panthera tigris) in a semi-arid, dry deciduous forest in western India
In any one place, a few large species make up the bulk of meals. Crocodiles and other unusual prey are memorable but rare.
These animals suit tigers for good reasons. Hoofed grazers live in the same forests and grasslands as tigers and are often plentiful. A single deer or boar is a lot of meat for one kill, and they cannot fight back the way a bear or another predator can. Herds also move predictably to water and grazing spots, where a stalking cat can wait.
Sambar are large, dark forest deer that often weigh well over 150 kg. A single adult can feed a tiger for several days. Chital, or spotted deer, are smaller, live in herds and are common in Indian reserves.
In one southern Indian reserve, gaur, the world’s largest wild cattle, provided about 75% of the meat tigers ate.4Mammal Study. Diet Composition and Prey Preference of Tiger, Leopard, and Dhole in Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, Southern Western Ghats, India Gaur are so large and powerful that tigers usually target calves, young animals or weaker individuals rather than healthy adult bulls.
Percentages from different studies may count different things: share of droppings, share of kills found, or share of meat eaten. A small animal can appear often in droppings yet supply little of the actual meat, because large kills weigh far more. The figures here show the pattern in particular places, not a fixed menu for every tiger.
How Tiger Diets Change From India to Russia and Sumatra
In the Russian Far East, wild boar, roe deer, sika deer and red deer together supplied about 87% of the meat tigers ate.5PubMed. A comparison of food habits and prey preference of Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) at three sites in the Russian Far East Those tigers favoured wild boar and tended to avoid sika deer.6PubMed. A comparison of food habits and prey preference of Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) at three sites in the Russian Far East In northeast China, wild boar appeared in about 37% of tiger droppings and roe deer in about 22%.7PubMed Central. Seasonal food habits and prey selection of Amur tigers and Amur leopards in Northeast China Tigers there favoured wild boar in both winter and summer.8PubMed Central. Seasonal food habits and prey selection of Amur tigers and Amur leopards in Northeast China Keeping wild boar numbers healthy is therefore central to protecting Amur tigers.9PubMed. A comparison of food habits and prey preference of Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) at three sites in the Russian Far East
Cold climate shapes this menu. Northern forests hold fewer prey species than tropical ones, and snow and winter cold raise a tiger’s energy needs. With fewer choices, Amur tigers depend heavily on boar and a few deer species.
Because wild boar travel in groups and root along the ground, they are often easier to locate than a lone deer. Their numbers also rise and fall with acorn and pine nut crops, so a poor nut year can ripple up to the tigers. And a heavy meal suits the large bodies of Amur tigers, among the biggest of all tigers.
Wild boar show up in diets everywhere because they live across almost the whole tiger range, from Russia to Indonesia. They breed quickly and recover from hunting faster than many deer.
In Sumatra, tigers’ movements and active hours overlapped most with wild boar, followed by sambar and pig-tailed macaques.10Oryx. Predicting preferred prey of Sumatran tigers Panthera tigris sumatrae via spatio-temporal overlap Their active hours also overlapped strongly with muntjac, small barking deer, and sambar.11Journal of Zoology. Assessing tiger–prey interactions in Sumatran rainforests They overlapped little with the Malayan tapir, the biggest prey around, because tapirs are active at night while tigers hunt mostly at dawn and dusk.12Journal of Zoology. Assessing tiger–prey interactions in Sumatran rainforests
Dense rainforest hides prey, so tigers there meet animals one at a time more than in open Indian grasslands full of herds. That is why researchers measure activity overlap: it shows which animals a tiger is actually likely to meet. Overlap shows opportunity, not diet, so it points to likely prey and does not prove what was eaten.
Why Tigers Prefer Prey Between 60 and 250 Kilograms
Across many studies, prey weight was the only thing that reliably predicted which animals tigers prefer.13Journal of Zoology. Prey preferences of the tiger Panthera tigris Tigers favour species weighing 60 to 250 kg, about the same weight as the tiger itself.14Journal of Zoology. Prey preferences of the tiger Panthera tigris In one western Indian forest, the average animal a tiger ate weighed about 107 to 114 kg.15Journal of Zoology. Prey abundance and prey selection by tigers (Panthera tigris) in a semi-arid, dry deciduous forest in western India A large kill gives far more food for the energy spent stalking and attacking.
Very small prey costs nearly as much effort to catch but feeds the tiger for little time. Very large prey, like adult elephants or rhinos, is dangerous and hard to bring down.
Prey much heavier than the tiger can injure it with horns, hooves or sheer bulk, and an injured tiger may be unable to hunt. Young or weak animals of larger species can still be taken, so the range describes what tigers favour, not an absolute limit.
The tiger’s body is built for this. It has a heavy skull with a tall ridge on top that anchors big jaw muscles, and a strong lower jaw lets it hold struggling, heavy animals.
How a Tiger Stalks and Kills Its Prey
Tigers usually creep up from behind to within about 25 metres before charging.16Wild Tiger Health Project. Prey of tigers They rely on overtaking prey quickly rather than chasing it far, so if the rush fails within about 150 to 200 metres, the tiger usually gives up.17Wild Tiger Health Project. Prey of tigers
A tiger may spend a long time slowly closing the distance using cover. The striped coat helps: stripes break up its outline in tall grass and shadow, and many prey animals see colour poorly, so an orange cat blends in.
Most hunts still fail, so tigers make many tries for each meal. A deer that notices the tiger early can bolt before the tiger reaches charging range. Alarm calls from one deer, or from monkeys and birds, can warn a whole herd.
The tiger grabs and holds prey with its claws.18Wild Tiger Health Project. Prey of tigers Small animals are killed with a bite to the back of the neck that breaks it, while large animals are killed with a clamping bite to the throat or muzzle that suffocates them.19Wild Tiger Health Project. Prey of tigers Afterward, the tiger often drags the body into cover to eat undisturbed.
Tigers mostly hunt at dawn, dusk or at night.20tigerstealive.com. The 5 Key Tiger Senses Their eyes have many light-sensing cells, a reflective layer behind the retina, and large pupils that gather light.21Seaworld Parks & Entertainment. Tigers: Senses They see roughly six times better than people in the dark.22tigerstealive.com. The 5 Key Tiger Senses Hearing is their sharpest sense, and their ears rotate to pinpoint rustling prey in thick undergrowth.23Seaworld Parks & Entertainment. Tigers: Senses Their whiskers sense air movement and the position of prey up close.24tigerstealive.com. The 5 Key Tiger Senses
How Much a Tiger Eats and How Often It Kills
To avoid starving, an adult male Amur tiger needs at least about 5.2 kg of meat a day.25Biological Conservation. Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) energetic requirements: Implications for conserving wild tigers A female without cubs needs about 3.9 kg a day.26Biological Conservation. Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) energetic requirements: Implications for conserving wild tigers A female raising four cubs needs about 11.4 kg a day on average over nearly two years.27Biological Conservation. Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) energetic requirements: Implications for conserving wild tigers That works out to about 25 kills a year for a male, about 18 for a female alone, and about 54 for a mother with four cubs.28Biological Conservation. Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) energetic requirements: Implications for conserving wild tigers Mothers must hunt roughly three times as often.
The yearly counts average out many kills of different sizes, so real intervals vary from kill to kill. Smaller prey run out faster, so a tiger living on small animals must kill more often.
Tigers often return to a kill over several days, eating most of it. At feeding sites of animals over 100 kg, the full skeleton and skull are usually left behind.29Journal of Zoology. Carcass utilization by tigers: implications for calculating prey requirements A tiger can eat a huge amount in one sitting after a big kill and then go days without eating, so the daily figures are averages, not daily meals.
Why Tigers Sometimes Kill Livestock
Where wild prey is thin, tigers increasingly turn to cattle.30PubMed Central. Trophic Cascades and Habitat Suitability in Udanti Sitanadi Tiger Reserve: Impacts of Prey Depletion and Climate Change on Predator-Prey Dynamics Near one Nepal park, more livestock killing may be linked to fewer wild prey from illegal hunting.31PubMed Central. Livestock Depredation by Leopards and Tigers Near Bardia National Park, Nepal In one Indian reserve, tigers killed more domestic animals the farther they ranged from the protected core.32PubMed Central. Wild versus domestic prey in the diet of reintroduced tigers (Panthera tigris) in the livestock-dominated multiple-use forests of Panna Tiger Reserve, India Within 10 km of the core, males killed more livestock than females, but beyond that both killed similar numbers.33PubMed Central. Wild versus domestic prey in the diet of reintroduced tigers (Panthera tigris) in the livestock-dominated multiple-use forests of Panna Tiger Reserve, India
Protected cores tend to hold more wild prey, while outer zones are shared with villages and herds. Young tigers without territory are often pushed to the edges, where livestock are more common.
Cattle are in the tiger’s preferred size range, and domestic animals are slower and less wary than wild deer. Livestock grazing at forest edges puts easy prey in tiger territory, and the losses can turn local people against tigers.
Most tigers in most places kill wild prey, and livestock killing is concentrated in particular tigers and places. Still, a single lost animal matters a great deal to one household, even when it is a small share of the tiger’s diet.
Protecting wild deer and boar from poaching leaves tigers less reason to raid herds. Keeping animals in sturdy enclosures at night removes easy targets, and many areas compensate farmers for lost animals to ease conflict.
What Happens When Big Prey Runs Out
Where prey is plentiful, tigers, leopards and dholes all focus on hoofed animals over 30 kg.34PubMed. The effects of prey depletion on dietary niches of sympatric apex predators in Southeast Asia As those decline, each shifts toward smaller, less rewarding prey of 30 kg or less, and the range of foods in their diets roughly doubles.35PubMed. The effects of prey depletion on dietary niches of sympatric apex predators in Southeast Asia
Eating smaller prey signals that the best food has become scarce. Smaller prey gives less meat per hunt, so tigers must hunt more often for the same food. It also means more competition: when all three predators turn to smaller prey, they overlap more and compete for the same animals. In forests rich in big prey, each species can focus on different animals, which eases the pressure.
Leopards and wild dogs often take smaller prey, while tigers take the biggest.36Mammal Study. Diet Composition and Prey Preference of Tiger, Leopard, and Dhole in Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, Southern Western Ghats, India In one Indian reserve, leopards and dholes favoured the tiny mouse deer while tigers favoured gaur.37Mammal Study. Diet Composition and Prey Preference of Tiger, Leopard, and Dhole in Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, Southern Western Ghats, India This split lets several predators live side by side. Tigers sometimes kill leopards, which is one reason leopards avoid them.
Forests with about 5 to 64 hoofed prey animals per square kilometre supported about 3 to 17 tigers per 100 square kilometres.38PubMed Central / PNAS. Tigers and their prey: Predicting carnivore densities from prey abundance More prey reliably supports more tigers.39PubMed Central / PNAS. Tigers and their prey: Predicting carnivore densities from prey abundance Where tigers live, forests also tend to hold more carbon, partly because tigers keep plant-eating animals in check.40PubMed. Global Tiger Density Linked With Forest Carbon Stock, Top-Down and Bottom-Up