1. Home
  2. Home & Garden
  3. Cats
photo of Franny Syufy

Franny's Cats Blog

By Franny Syufy, About.com Guide to Cats since 1997

How to Read a Tiger's Roar

Tuesday October 7, 2003
Elizabeth von Muggenthaler is a bioacoustician from the Fauna Communications Research Institute in North Carolina. Bioacoustics studies animal behavior by analyzing the volume, pitch, frequency, and duration of the animal's sounds.

Von Muggenthaler believes that a tiger's roar has the power to paralyze listeners, including prey animals, and even human trainers. "When a tiger roars-the sound will rattle and paralyze you," she says. "Although untested, we suspect that this is caused by the low frequencies and loudness of the sound." Certainly, anyone who has heard the spine-tingling roar of a tiger in a manmade zoo den can attest to the intimidating result.

The bioacoustician and her colleagues have recorded the growls, chuffs, hisses, and roars of 24 tigers in hopes of learning more about their behavior, with the ultimate goal of protecting them from extinction.

Resources
  • ScienceDaily News Release: The Secret Of A Tiger's Roar
  • rooaaAAAR!
  • The Florida Panther: The U.S.'s Own Endangered Big Cat
  • Comments

    February 7, 2007 at 5:17 pm
    (1) Vlittney says:

    I love tigers!

    April 20, 2007 at 9:45 am
    (2) Annette says:

    Most beautiful animal on the plant, only 4500 left, please help them

    April 23, 2007 at 11:16 am
    (3) Dave says:

    PLEASE HELP TIGERS! Visit our website http://www.tigerrific.com for tiger posters, t-shirts and many more, supporting SAVE THE TIGER FUND

    Leave a Comment

    Line and paragraph breaks are automatic. Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title="">, <b>, <i>, <strike>

    Explore Cats

    About.com Special Features

    Home Allergy Center

    Banish mess, reduce allergens, and maintain a clean, healthy home. More >

    Home Improvements Made Easy

    Inspirational ideas and expert tips to help you pull off your next DIY project. More >

    1. Home
    2. Home & Garden
    3. Cats

    ©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.

    All rights reserved.