They are as agile as they are strong: tigers can leap more than 30 feet (9 m) in a single bound, climb trees, and swim for miles.

And in their forest habitats, they can disappear in an instant, melting soundlessly into the brush. "When you see a tiger," says Indian biologist Ullas Karanth, "it is always like a dream."

Tigers, like all cats, are full-time carnivores. They eat only meat -- nothing else. They hunt a wide range of animals -- deer, water buffalo, wild pigs, small mammals, and even birds. They ambush their prey, waiting in dense foliage where their camouflage markings keep them hidden.

They bring down large animals with a flying tackle, forcing their daggerlike canines into the victim's throat or spine. But for all their stealth and power, tigers are successful hunters only about 10 percent of the time.

To find sufficient food, they need a lot of territory. Most tigers travel about 6 to 12 miles (10-19 km) a day (actually, "a night" would be more accurate, since tigers are pri- marily nocturnal). They're normally solitary animals, but they have been known to occasionally hunt in packs.

So as forests throughout Asia are rapidly transformed into farmlands, tigers are squeezed into smaller and smaller pockets of territory. These tiny patches of forest are too small to hold enough prey for the few remaining tigers. In desperation, they may turn to livestock, and sometimes even to humans.

Humans have also turned against tigers. In Asia, tiger bones are touted as a cure for rheumatism. Tiger eyes are said to calm convulsions. Tiger penis soup allegedly enhances sexual prowess. And tiger pelts can bring a princely sum.

Expanding economies in many parts of Asia have brought rising incomes. Exotic products are within the financial reach of more and more people, and trade in tiger parts is therefore booming, despite legal restrictions and threats of sanctions. For tigers, crisis has quickly become catastrophe; soon, the tiger's fire will be ashes.

In the case of tigers, plans for reintroduction into Asian countries at some future time are probably unrealistic. Animals reared in captivity don't learn to hunt. Also, it's unlikely that villagers would welcome huge predatory cats back into the neighborhood.

This brings up the question: what's the point of keeping the species alive when its habitat is gone? habitat conservation -- setting aside large reserves -- may be the only long-term method for saving the world's biodiversity.

Wildlife biologist George Schaller has pointed out that, "it would cost millions to breed and reintroduce tigers. If Asian nations want tigers, they can have them far more cheaply by protecting the remaining wild tigers."

© 1996 The American Museum of Natural History.