Ask any pet owner if theirs beloved companion has a personality and you’ll get an emphatic “yes” most of the time.
But now tiger researchers can also nod along – a study published on Wednesday shows that the world’s largest big cats have individual characteristics.
The behavior of the 248 Siberian tigers observed through a personality test showed that the endangered cats had unique traits that influenced both their reproductive success and survival, the researchers said reported in the diary Open Science of the Royal Society.
“We found that tigers are very individual and that people who have worked with them and know them well see their individual personalities,” co-author Rosalind Arden, of the London School of Economics, told AFP.
The study adapted a commonly used human personality test to examine tiger traits such as confidence, sincerity, bullying and ferocity in two different populations of tigers kept in semi-captivity in China.
Questionnaires listing 70 personality indicators were completed by veterinarians and feeders who work with the tigers on a daily basis.
The combined results revealed that both tiger populations exhibited traits that fell into two overarching personality categories: majesty and steadfastness.
Tigers with a higher Majesty score were healthier, hunted more live animals, and ate and mate more.
They were also “regarded by their human raters as having a higher group status among tigers,” the study says.
But being cooperative and gentler also had its evolutionary benefits: “calm” tigers turned out to be gentler, more sincere, and more affectionate.
Such traits may play a role in the unusually long length of time—two to three years—that tiger cubs stay with their mothers.
However, the study found very few gender differences in tiger personalities, and father tigers were also observed to be involved in raising their cubs.
“It’s nice to see that you don’t have to be dominant, fierce, competitive and aggressive to be successful as a tiger,” Arden said.
Similar studies that shed light on the personality and mental abilities of primates have helped humanize them, Arden said.
“There is evidence that it actually improves animal welfare and conservation,” she added.
Siberian tigers are endangered due to poaching and habitat loss. Only about 500 remain in the wild.
