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Amasia was one of three sisters born in one litter at The Big Cat Sanctuary. Her sisters Aleena and Siberia live at Hertfordshire Zoo
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This beautiful tigress does command respect but responds positively to training, which has helped her grow in confidence over the years
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Amasia, like most big cats, is driven by food and will go to great lengths to get it!
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Amasia is quietly more playful than she may have people believe. She enjoys enrichment and during the summer takes regular dips in her pool!
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Amasia lives in the tiger unit, along with Baikal and Puna, but in a separate enclosures
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Amasia is an ambassador for her species, which is classed as Endangered on the IUCN redlist
Amasia remained at the Sanctuary when her two sisters, Siberia and Alena, moved to our sister park, Hertfordshire Zoo (formerly Paradise Wildlife Park). She is a beautiful tiger, happy going about daily life without too much fuss. She is brilliant with her training and absolutely loves her food!
Of the five remaining tiger sub-species, the Amur, or Siberian, tiger is the largest. Amur tigers are native to the far Eastern Amur Valley in Russia, and they are the largest naturally occurring cat in the world. They can live in sub-zero temperatures due to their longer, thicker fur coat.
Amur tigers have several distinguishing features in their coat colour and stripe pattern compared to the other tiger sub-species. Amur tigers are typically paler in colour with a pale orange coat and comparatively wide stripes. In contrast, the Sumatran tiger is very deep orange with thin stripes that are very closely banded together. The fur is very thick and coarse, due to the extreme variation in temperature in their native range.
The Amur tiger typically inhabits pine forest, where they have an abundance of species to prey on. When food is scarce, Amur tigers have been known to prey upon young bears, often brown bears, as they are not known climbers like the black bear, which can escape tiger attacks using the trees.
Due to the harsh environment, there is no specific breeding season for Amur tigers, and mating may occur year round. Females in season will typically spend five days with a wandering male, but will only be receptive for three of these days. Gestation is relatively short: three to three and a half months, after which two to four cubs are born, and solely cared for by the female. Female cubs typically spend much longer with their mother than male cubs, who will move away to find home ranges of their own.
The main threats to the wild Amur tiger population are very similar to those facing other big cat species: loss of habitat, poaching for the fur trade, and the use of tiger body parts in the traditional medicine trade.
Take part in one of our amazing animal experiences at The Big Cat Sanctuary including big cat experiences, photography experiences, safari lodges and overnight safari stays, ranger for a day experiences and our big cat afternoon tea with Paul Hollywood. You can also adopt a big cat and help the conservation efforts that support our amazing animals!