The biggest of the big cats, the tiger, does not live in Africa. Though the continent is home to a wide variety of great cats and predators, tigers are not among them. Only 13 tiger-range nations in Asia are home to wild tigers.
Tigers in the wild have a diverse natural environment that encompasses a number of habitats. While they prefer wooded habitats, they may also be found in grasslands, mangrove swamps, and even rocky terrain.
From China, Indonesia, and Southeast Asia to India and portions of Russia, these magnificent animals may be found. India is home to the world’s greatest number of tigers in the wild (around 3,000).
While their range was once vast, poaching and habitat destruction have put several tiger subspecies on the verge of extinction. In Asia, there are around 4,000 tigers remaining in the wild.
Africa is home to some of the world’s most dangerous animals –
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1. Lions
It doesn’t matter that there aren’t any wild tigers in Africa. The continent is home to some of the biggest predators in the world, including a lot of big cats.
The lion is perhaps the most well-known African large cat predator. The Sahara desert and the Sub-Saharan African nations of Botswana, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are accessible to lions.
They, like tigers, used to be more common, but their range has shrunk over time. Lions are one of the four genera of Panthera’s ‘large cats.’ These creatures live in feelings of pride and spend most of their life together, hunting, living, and sleeping together.
They hunt grass-eating herd animals like antelope, gazelles, and wildebeests on broad open grasslands like the savannah.
2. Leopard
The leopard is another large cat predator found in Africa. Sub-Saharan and northeastern Africa are home to these fearsome beasts. In terms of endangerment, however, their population is deemed fragile.
Leopards are often regarded as the most elusive of the big cats, and they may be difficult to detect in the wild. They are fearsome hunters that are exceedingly strong. Leopards, unlike lions, who live and hunt in groups, are more solitary, hunting deer, antelope, and pigs on their own.
They are great climbers and sleep and hunt mostly from trees. Their spotted coats help them to blend in with the foliage, hiding them from predators and allowing them to sleep unobserved throughout the day.
Leopards are also excellent swimmers, having been seen fishing and traveling long distances across rivers and big bodies of water.
3. Cheetah
Africa is also home to African cheetahs. They are primarily known for being the world’s fastest land animal, but they may also be skilled hunters. They reside in the savannah, Serengeti, and Sahara, and may be found over most of Africa.
They, like many other big animals, have isolated populations and fragmented areas, as well as a globally endangered population.
Not only are these cats endangered by poaching and habitat degradation, but they are also disease-prone and may be skittish. Cheetahs, on the other hand, need incredibly huge areas to flourish.
They are increasingly coming into combat with other cheetahs or big predators due to their fragmented habitats. Despite their speed and strength, cheetahs, hyenas, and even lions can frequently bully their prey away from them.
As a result, they may have difficulty eating or keeping sufficient food to thrive. Cheetahs have been compelled to endanger farmlands and roving herds as a result of this, making them a target for poachers.
- Tigers do not dwell in Africa, although they may be found in Asia’s 13 tiger range nations.
- Tigers may be found in parts of India, Southeast Asia, and South China, as well as Siberia.
- Other large cats found in Africa include lions, leopards, and cheetahs.