Among all the animals existing today, the tiger is considered to be one of the most fascinating. The tiger symbolizes speed, power, force and its presence holds a cool confidence that commands respect. It is no wonder, therefore, that the tiger is a popular beast in literature and folklore, usually around Southern Asia. Tigers usually play characters in folk tales, novels and children’s stories. They are also often found portraying antagonistic roles in movies. In Chinese astrology, the year 2010 is known to be the Year of the Metal Tiger. According to this zodiac, people born in the years of the tiger possess similar traits to that of the animal – fierce and strong.
Even though the lion has been nicknamed the ‘king of the jungle’, lions are in fact smaller than tigers. There are many subspecies of tigers that most people may not be aware of. Some are already extinct, like the Balinese, Caspian and Javan tigers, while most are still in existence today. The existing subspecies of tigers are the Bengal, Sumatran, Indochinese, Siberian, Malayan and the South China. The Siberian tiger is considered the largest of all the subspecies, while the Sumatran tiger is the smallest.
