Photo: Alexey Shalin / Wikimedia Commons Meet the world’s largest feline: the liger
While ligers are certainly a sight to behold, you’ll never find them outside of a zoo – they’re a man-made hybrid cross between a male lion and a tigress, something that would never occur in nature
Ligers look somewhat like striped tigers
They inherit brown fur from their tiger fathers and black stripes from their lioness mothers
As a result of this union between the lion, the largest and heaviest feline, and the tiger, the second largest, ligers are much larger and heavier than their parents
In fact, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the world’s largest cat is a tiger named Hercules, who weighs 922 pounds and is 11 feet long and 4 feet at the shoulder
At 922 pounds (4182 kg) and 11 feet (333 m) in length and 4 feet (125 m) tall at the shoulder, it is considered the world’s largest living feline
Photo by Ali West
Like many other unnatural hybrids, ligers often die in utero or prematurely
They also suffer from a variety of uncomfortable genetic defects and diseases associated with both tigers and lions, such as neurological problems, cancer, arthritis and organ dysfunction
Photo by Hkandy
For these reasons, as well as the lack of conservation value and danger to the mother lioness during birth, ligers are banned in most zoos and animal sanctuaries; And those who choose to breed the animals are frowned upon by big cat conservationists around the world
Watch the video below to see a liger in action: The liger is one of many surprising hybrid species
Click here to learn about 20 more amazing hybrid animals
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