Extremely ENDANGERED, the Sumatran Tiger is native only to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. Only 400 individual animals are estimated to exist in the wild and less then 200 in worldwide zoos.

Sumatra provides a varying landscape in which this subspecies lives. From peat-moss forest, submontain and montain forest as well as lowland forest. As a result, the Sumatran Tigers' coat has evolved slightly different from the other tiger subspecies. First of all, the Sumatran Tiger's coat is the darkest of all tigers. It has wide black stripes that are closely spaced, sometimes doubled up on each other. These stripes also run down the animals' forelegs, a distinction setting them apart from the Siberian Tiger.

The Sumatran Tiger is the smallest tiger subspecies. Males weighing roughly 260 pounds compared to the average 650 pounds reached by the Siberian Tiger. Females are very small comparatively as well; obtaining weights between 150 and 200 pounds.

Native prey includes Muntjak Deer (a very small deer species), Wild Pigs and Rusa (a large deer). Prey densities on Sumatra are sufficient to sustain inhabiting tigers. Thus a lack of food items is not considered a factor in their dwindling numbers. The primary threat to this rare tiger species is encroachment by man. Sumatra's neighboring island Java has a tremendous population of about 110 million people. Every year about six hundred thousand people emigrate from Java to Sumatra. This influx is compounded by the fact that Java's population increases by two million a year. This yearly population burst on Java puts even greater pressures on Sumatra to absorb even more immigrants. It does not take a "Super Genius" to figure out that this huge yearly human population increase is at the expense of the Sumatran Tiger's habitat. So far it is estimated that Sumatra has lost a staggering 65 to 80 percent of its pristine forests.

As stated threw out tigerhomes.org's commentary, habitat protection is the key again to the survival of the Sumatran Tiger. If nothing is done to stop human encroachment on Sumatra, this subspecies will become extinct like the Java Tiger (last seen in 1975).