Have you ever heard of a Liger before? I never had until yesterday, but apparently it’s a form of big cat that’s a cross breed between a tiger and a lion. I wouldn’t have believed it until I saw a picture on the BBC News website of a dog that’s taken over the care of two Liger babies because the mother tiger didn’t want to look after them.
Although Ligers aren’t found in the wild they are the biggest cats in the world, growing far bigger than either tigers or lions. I find it amazing that two different species can breed like that – but it’s probably a good thing they aren’t in the wild because apparently they are very aggressive and quite vicious.
I also read that there are rumours that there used to be Ligers in the wild when the habitats of tigers and lions overlapped. That would be a scary thought having these Ligers roaming the countryside, you definitely wouldn’t want to come across a pack of them otherwise you’d be in trouble. I think it’s surprising that most people haven’t heard of Ligers – I’d imagine they’d be a major tourist attraction for those zoos or establishments that have them. I’m not sure about the health of the ligers though, it is safe for them to be bred together?