Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Tiger Attack!

Holy flircking schnit. The video below was shot in India as a group of men on elephants attempted to tranquilize a tigress.

You must watch this. It's only 28 seconds, and don't worry, there's no gore:





The amazing full account of events before, during, and after this, including what happened to the mahut (he lived, but lost most of his hand.) and how the elephant heroically saved two men, can be found here.

A Chinese saying says "The tiger's progress is as silent as the moon's."

John Vaillant, in his book The Tiger (which you MUST read) shows just how utterly fearless, ferocious, and unpredictable these creatures can be. He says, "When I was in the Far East, I was told repeatedly that if a tiger has targeted you, you will never see it coming."

Imagine a creature of 800 pounds that can move in silence, sprint up to 50 mph, kill a bear with its paws, crush bones with its jaws, is completely without fear, and knows how to hunt you better than you know how to hunt it. Tigers have attacked helicopters; they've charged cars. They learn fast and will change tactics if the situation calls for it. They know no master, and when challenged, will annihilate the threat if they can.

That said, they rarely attack humans. If we leave them alone, these magnificent creatures will leave us alone - and flourish. The world would be a sorry place without them in its wilds.

1 comment:

Jen Klein said...

That, my friend, is badass.