Species Interactions
The Bengal tiger interacts with various different types of species in the habitat in which they live in. The most common type of relationship that is demonstrated by the Bengal tiger is predation. Predation occurs when one species benefits through the interaction, while the other species is at a disadvantage. ("Ecological Communities," n.d.).
Since the Bengal tiger is a predator located at the top of the food chain, it preys on a variety of animals such as wild pigs, porcupine and hares. (Bagchi, Goyal, & Sankar, 2002) Bengal tigers coexist with other predators such as leopards, Asiatic wild dogs, brown bears, red pandas, rhinos and wolves in their habitat. Since the Bengal tiger is the most superior predator of the coexisting predators in the same habitat, predation of these coexisting predators is not an uncommon act by the Bengal tiger. ("Tigers Behavior," n.d.).("Animals Who Share," n.d.). Tigers have been even known to kill co predators such as rhinos and elephants. (Dutta, 2008). ("Tiger Kills," 2009). These species do not influence the population of the Bengal tiger in any form, but in turn, provide a source of nutrition for the Bengal tiger, giving it the ability to survive. Bengal tiger’s also experience negative species interactions. These interactions are parasitism and predation in the form of human hunting. A common illness that the Bengal tiger is faced with is Tick Bite Fever, which is caused by a tick. This is a form of parasitism, in which the Bengal tiger is harmed due to the loss of blood, but the tick benefits by absorbing nutrients from the tigers’ blood. Tick Bite Fever is typically an illness that can be overcome by the Bengal tiger. Another form of parasitism is the fatal transfer of a dead virus through an animal bite. This is commonly found when the Bengal tiger is hunting. This form a disease is known as rabies, which is usually fatal once the animal has contracted it. ("Illnesses in Tigers," n.d.). Human hunting is another interaction, which provides harm to the Bengal tiger population. More information on the negative influence of humans on the Bengal tiger can be found in the “Human Influence” tab of the website. Both humans and organisms involved in parasitism negatively harm the Bengal tiger population, which in turn limits the growth of the population. Through viruses such as rabies, and human hunting, the ability and rate of reproduction is diminished due to the killing of Bengal tigers, reducing the offspring that theoretically should have been produced. Although there are many species interactions are positive through the predation of prey, human hunting and viruses limit the potential of expansion of the Bengal tiger population.
Since the Bengal tiger is a predator located at the top of the food chain, it preys on a variety of animals such as wild pigs, porcupine and hares. (Bagchi, Goyal, & Sankar, 2002) Bengal tigers coexist with other predators such as leopards, Asiatic wild dogs, brown bears, red pandas, rhinos and wolves in their habitat. Since the Bengal tiger is the most superior predator of the coexisting predators in the same habitat, predation of these coexisting predators is not an uncommon act by the Bengal tiger. ("Tigers Behavior," n.d.).("Animals Who Share," n.d.). Tigers have been even known to kill co predators such as rhinos and elephants. (Dutta, 2008). ("Tiger Kills," 2009). These species do not influence the population of the Bengal tiger in any form, but in turn, provide a source of nutrition for the Bengal tiger, giving it the ability to survive. Bengal tiger’s also experience negative species interactions. These interactions are parasitism and predation in the form of human hunting. A common illness that the Bengal tiger is faced with is Tick Bite Fever, which is caused by a tick. This is a form of parasitism, in which the Bengal tiger is harmed due to the loss of blood, but the tick benefits by absorbing nutrients from the tigers’ blood. Tick Bite Fever is typically an illness that can be overcome by the Bengal tiger. Another form of parasitism is the fatal transfer of a dead virus through an animal bite. This is commonly found when the Bengal tiger is hunting. This form a disease is known as rabies, which is usually fatal once the animal has contracted it. ("Illnesses in Tigers," n.d.). Human hunting is another interaction, which provides harm to the Bengal tiger population. More information on the negative influence of humans on the Bengal tiger can be found in the “Human Influence” tab of the website. Both humans and organisms involved in parasitism negatively harm the Bengal tiger population, which in turn limits the growth of the population. Through viruses such as rabies, and human hunting, the ability and rate of reproduction is diminished due to the killing of Bengal tigers, reducing the offspring that theoretically should have been produced. Although there are many species interactions are positive through the predation of prey, human hunting and viruses limit the potential of expansion of the Bengal tiger population.