Sumatran Tiger (panthera tigris) – Melbourne Zoo
Once again the Sumatran tiger caught my eye at Melbourne Zoo last week. This time one was sprawled out in the shallows of the moat between the enclosure and the open air viewing area, cooling off in Melbourne’s heat wave.
I’ve never seen a tiger in the moat before and I couldn’t help but be reminded of that story & photos I posted a while back. Story is at http://victoriaaphotography.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/sumatran-tiger-panthera-tigris-sumatrae-encounter-melbourne-zoo/ in case you’re new to my blog and haven’t read it.
I didn’t actually think that tigers liked the water, but Melbourne’s high temperatures last week must have enticed this tiger into the cool, shady part. I can’t help but wonder if that moat is ALL shallow water………….. or deepens on the visitor side. I also can’t help but wonder if tigers can swim over to the low fence near the water, which is something like a meter (or just a few feet) away from where I was standing?
Hmmm……
(Alright, I’m a ‘chicken’ and scared of tigers).
Wow, Vicki! This is sooo cool! Ashley will really enjoy this one!
I hope the tiger was ‘cool’ too, Steve.
I assume Ashley is keen on tigers, then. Did you show her the previous tiger post – the expressions on the tiger’s face were so revealing.
Wow Wow Victoria ~ these are phenomenal!! Nothing compares to your captures of these magnificent creatures — the effect of the water reflecting his coat — just breathtaking…. Bravo!
Thankyou for the lovely comment, Robyn. This is only the second time I have visited the tigers and they (there’s actually 2 I think) have been still enough to photograph. Normally they pace up and down as though the enclosure is too small and they want to escape.
I would have had the polarising lens on this day which is why the reflection is better than usual. I also had to do some editing as one side of the tiger was in bright sun and that photo half was over-exposed, with the the other half of the photo being too dark and under-exposed. Had to lighten the shadows slightly in editing so the background wasn’t completely black. Once again, I was aiming the focal point for the tiger’s eyes. But it was nice & still (until it got up and ran up to the side of the enclosure where there’s a thick glass viewing window – must have seen another visitor it ‘fancied’ like in my original story).
Superb shots, as Robyn said, can’t top her comments. Tigers are the only cat family members that do like water and frequently lie in it like this.
Thanks for the info about the water loving tigers, Carolyn. I didn’t know they liked water. I learn something new every day.
Who says cats don’t like water
What majestic beasts – your shots are really wonderful.
What a beauty, lovely!
These big cats are wonderful creatures aren’t they Timo. Great to be able to capture one with my DSLR – thanks for your comment.
Love them! Tigers do like water a lot and they can swim a surprisingly far distance – at least several kilometers a day. I don’t think a small moat would give them much pause. lol
Well, that wasn’t very reassuring, Lisa.
Maybe I’ve got enough Sumatran tiger photos for the rest of my Life and should give this area a miss from now on.
Superb compositions. The eyes are wonderful & beautiful rich detail of the head.
Thank you elmediat. We’re so lucky here in Melbourne Zoo – the animal enclosures are mostly built in such a way so that you can view animals close-up from behind glass windows OR in the open, in a more natural settings – none of the horrible old small iron cages from the early 20th century left now.