Liger | 台北市立動物園資訊網

Theligerisahybridoffspringofamalelion(Pantheraleo)andafemaletiger(​Pantheratigris).Theligerhasparentsinthesamegenusbutofdifferentspecies.

Lion and tigress hybrid

The liger is a hybrid offspring of a male lion (Panthera leo) and a tigress, or female tiger (Panthera tigris). The liger has parents in the same genus but of different species. The liger is distinct from the opposite hybrid called the tigon (of a male tiger and a lioness), and is the largest of all known extant felines.[1][2] They enjoy swimming, which is a characteristic of tigers, and are very sociable like lions. Notably, ligers typically grow larger than either parent species, unlike tigons.[1][2][3]

History

The history of lion–tiger hybrids dates to at least the early 19th century in India. In 1798, Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire (1772–1844) made a colour plate of the offspring of a lion and a tiger. The name "liger", a portmanteau of lion and tiger, was coined by the 1930s.[4] "Ligress" is used to refer to a female liger, on the model of "tigress".

In 1825, G. B. Whittaker made an engraving of liger cubs born in 1824.[3] T...