– A person or animal lacking normal pigmentation, with the result being that the skin and hair are abnormally white or milky and the eyes have a pink or blue iris and a deep-red pupil (White Bengal tigers are not albinos.)
– Concealment by disguise or protective coloring
– A tiger vocalization equated to a cat’s purr; a means for saying hello
– A group of usually two to six male lions that drive off and replace the male lions in a pride in order to mate with the females and protect the resulting offspring
– occurring or active during twilight
– a young big cat (tiger, lion, leopard, jaguar) diurnal- occurring or active during the day
Flehmen response (flehming)
– a grimacing look easily identified by an open mouth, wrinkled nose, raised chin and gaping tongue. Its function is to open the Jacobson’s Organ, located on the roof of the mouth, allowing scents to be processed in full strength. Both male and female cats exhibit this behavior.
– the bone that supports the tongue and its muscles. In big cats, it has an elastic segment that allows them to roar but prevents them from purring continuosly while inhaling and exhaling. Small cats have a hyoid that is solid bone, allowing them to purr but not roar.
– a young small cat (domestic, bobcat, lynx, cougar, etc.)
– an increased amount of black or nearly black pigmentation, resulting from the presence of melanin
– occurring or active at night
– tiny, hook-like barbs on a cat’s tongue which allow cats to groom and to strip meat from their kill
– An organism that lives by preying on other organisms
– an animal taken by a predator as food
– a group of lions made up of related females, their cubs and a coalition of unrelated males
– the footprint of an animal
Streak (or ambush)
– a group of tigers. Tiger groups, or streaks, only occur normally in captivity where it’s not uncommon for a group of tigers to live together. In the wild, tigers are solitary animals, so a streak would refer to a tigress and her young.