The fierce Bengal tiger stalks his quarry silently but relentlessly over miles of golden grassland that provides the perfect camouflage for nature's most formidable predator. Solitary and territorial, the Bengal tiger fiercely guards not only his territory with his magnificent sense of smell and treacherous teeth, but also his position at the top of the food chain. Deer, wild pigs, antelope, baby elephants, and occasionally humans are all his natural prey, though the Bengal tiger will strike at anything that crosses his path with his signature muscular spring, which hurls his 240-500 pound frame into the air and forward up to 30 feet.
This is the stereotypical tiger we know from Rudyard Kipling's
The Jungle Book: Shere Khan; the tiger that is the symbol of many Anglo-Asian and Anglo-Indian military regiments, the mascot of formidable sports teams, and the proud national symbol of India itself.
The Bengal tiger seems invincible, as he is, to all other animals except humans. In the past 100 years, human beings have been responsible for the near extinction of tigers, thanks to big game trophy hunting and traditional Chinese medicine, which uses many of the tiger's body parts. Of the eight species of tiger who once roamed the earth, only five still remain, and about half of those that do are Bengal tigers.
India's Ranthambore National Park - once the exclusive hunting preserve of Maharajahs, European royalty, and the upper crust of the British Raj - is now dedicated to protecting the Bengal Tiger from extinction. The 243-square mile sanctuary preserves the tigers' natural habitat; and unlike tigers in the wild, Ranthambore's tigers have become diurnal, hunting during the day rather than the night, which offers visitors the perfect opportunity to view tigers roaming around, basking in the sun, stalking their prey, or bringing up their cubs until they reach maturity at 18 months.
Ranthambore National Park is a major highlight of Alexander+Roberts's one-of-a-kind journey,
Land of the Maharajahs, which explores the park in 6-seater open-air jeeps, each hosted by an expert naturalist, rather than the enclosed bus or canter: just another way we make the experience intimate and unforgettable... though not too interactive in this case! Speak to one of our knowledgable reservation agents today about your trip to India!