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Description

Caucasus, 1808. A Caspian tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) strolls in front of a small herd of Caucasian wisent (Bison bonasus caucasicus). The tiger isn't interested in hunting, but with calves around, the herd nonetheless keeps a close watch on its movements.
Anyone who's ever watched a nature documentary or seen animals in the wild knows that, contrary to how they're always perceived, herbivores don't freak out at the first sight of a predator. Instead, they observe them, almost like we do, perhaps because of some primordial fascination all prey have with their predators.

Although long considered to be a subspecies (Panthera tigris virgata), we now know that the Caspian tiger was in fact a distinct population of the mainland tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), much like the extant Bengal, Siberian, Indochinese tigers, and South China tigers rather than a true subspecies. It inhabited central and western Asia from Turkey & Iran in the west to China & Mongolia in the east. It was closely related to and similar in size to the Siberian tiger, making it among the largest felids to have survived into modern times.
Based on descriptions and surviving material, this tiger appears to have had narrower stripes and a more uniform coat colour compared to the Siberian tiger, and the stripes themselves weren't a solid black but rather a mix of various shades of brown, with solid black patterns being restricted to the head (though this could be the result of individual variation, region-specific traits, deterioration of specimens, or a combination of all 3). It was also reported to have the thickest fur of any tiger.
These were also the tigers used by Romans in gladiatorial arenas, and seem to have held great significance in many Central Asian and Middle Eastern cultures.
The Caucasian wisent was a subspecies of the European bison aka wisent, which inhabited the Caucasus region. It was reported to be somewhat smaller than the extant subspecies (B. b. bonasus), better adapted to a mountainous habitat, and larger horns. As with the Caspian tiger, little is known about the behaviour and ecology of this species, as most people who encountered one at the time they were still around were more focused on bagging a trophy/specimen than actually observing them.
Seeing as how the year of the ox just ended, and the year of the tiger just began a few days ago, I figured I'd do a piece depicting a couple of animals most people don't generally picture coexisting. After all, the tiger is an icon of South and Southeast Asia, particularly India where they pretty much form the backbone of the ecotourism industry. Siberian tigers, while thankfully still extant, are almost stupidly elusive (and critically endangered).
The bison likewise is an icon of the Great Plains, with the European bison's brush with extinction having reduced its numbers to the point that, despite being among Europe's largest living land animal, is not nearly as famous as it's North American cousin.
We also tend to associate lions and cheetahs exclusively with Africa, but few are aware that both exist in Asia as well. Of course the main reason for this is that Asiatic lions and cheetahs are critically endangered with perilously small populations, whose continued existence is possible only thanks to rigorous conservation measures (in fact, despite being famed for its big cats (pantherines), Africa is only home to 2 of the 7 extant big cats: lions & leopards. Asia on the other hand is home to 6: lions, leopards, tigers, snow leopards, clouded leopards, and Sunda clouded leopards).

Sadly, such a sight has been lost to time. Hunting and poaching led to the extinction of the Caucasian wisent in 1921. The wisent species has been a victim of rampant hunting since ancient times, from food to trophies and even drinking horns. Although the species' population is a little more stable now, only 1 out of 3 subspecies survives to this day, which represents the loss of 2 distinct genetic lineages forever.

The Caspian tiger survived till as recently as the 1970s. There are people right here on DA, who were born around the time Caspian tigers roamed Asia, and whose grandparents or parents would've seen one at a zoo much like how any of us would see a Bengal or Siberian or Sumatran tiger at a zoo today (let that sink in). It too met its demise for the same reasons as the Caucasian wisent.

Ironically, although this year is being celebrated as the year of the tiger according to the Chinese zodiac calendar, it is the demand for tiger body parts for traditional Chinese medicine that is threatening their existence. Most of us don't consume tiger bone wine or some other questionable concoction, but have you (or a friend) ever had the chance to get up close and personal with a tiger? Maybe pet it & take a few selfies for a social media post? If yes, then congratulations, you just contributed to tiger endangerment!
There are lots of parks, resorts, & even hotels across the world where people are given the opportunity to hold a tiger cub or take a pic with a tiger. Though they claim to support tiger conservation, they really don't. These tigers are drugged to make them docile, declawed, and have their cubs are taken away at such a young age that their immune systems don't develop properly, causing them to die in a few months. If they do survive, once they become teenagers & too big to hold, they're usually killed and their parts sold on the black market.
Of the 2 extant tiger subspecies, the mainland tiger and the Sunda island tiger (Panthera tigris sondaica), the Bengal tiger population is the only one that's not critically endangered. But with a wild population of about 3,400 in increasingly fragmented habitats, it's not out of the woods yet.
The Sunda island tiger is survived only by the Sumatran tiger. As of posting this, I have about 3 times as many watchers on DA as there are Sumatran tigers in the world, which is scary.
We can only hope that this year of the tiger is more than just a meaningless gesture, or else, the tiger will become just as much a creature of fantasy as the dragon.

Side note: this was the first time I tried projection painting, and I could not be happier with the results. Such detail and realism but with relatively little effort. Only caveat though is that it's only usable from certain angles

Description

Caucasus, 1808. A Caspian tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) strolls in front of a small herd of Caucasian wisent (Bison bonasus caucasicus). The tiger isn't interested in hunting, but with calves around, the herd nonetheless keeps a close watch on its movements.
Anyone who's ever watched a nature documentary or seen animals in the wild knows that, contrary to how they're always perceived, herbivores don't freak out at the first sight of a predator. Instead, they observe them, almost like we do, perhaps because of some primordial fascination all prey have with their predators.

Although long considered to be a subspecies (Panthera tigris virgata), we now know that the Caspian tiger was in fact a distinct population of the mainland tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), much like the extant Bengal, Siberian, Indochinese tigers, and South China tigers rather than a true subspecies. It inhabited central and western Asia from Turkey & Iran in the west to China & Mongolia in the east. It was closely related to and similar in size to the Siberian tiger, making it among the largest felids to have survived into modern times.
Based on descriptions and surviving material, this tiger appears to have had narrower stripes and a more uniform coat colour compared to the Siberian tiger, and the stripes themselves weren't a solid black but rather a mix of various shades of brown, with solid black patterns being restricted to the head (though this could be the result of individual variation, region-specific traits, deterioration of specimens, or a combination of all 3). It was also reported to have the thickest fur of any tiger.
These were also the tigers used by Romans in gladiatorial arenas, and seem to have held great significance in many Central Asian and Middle Eastern cultures.
The Caucasian wisent was a subspecies of the European bison aka wisent, which inhabited the Caucasus region. It was reported to be somewhat smaller than the extant subspecies (B. b. bonasus), better adapted to a mountainous habitat, and larger horns. As with the Caspian tiger, little is known about the behaviour and ecology of this species, as most people who encountered one at the time they were still around were more focused on bagging a trophy/specimen than actually observing them.
Seeing as how the year of the ox just ended, and the year of the tiger just began a few days ago, I figured I'd do a piece depicting a couple of animals most people don't generally picture coexisting. After all, the tiger is an icon of South and Southeast Asia, particularly India where they pretty much form the backbone of the ecotourism industry. Siberian tigers, while thankfully still extant, are almost stupidly elusive (and critically endangered).
The bison likewise is an icon of the Great Plains, with the European bison's brush with extinction having reduced its numbers to the point that, despite being among Europe's largest living land animal, is not nearly as famous as it's North American cousin.
We also tend to associate lions and cheetahs exclusively with Africa, but few are aware that both exist in Asia as well. Of course the main reason for this is that Asiatic lions and cheetahs are critically endangered with perilously small populations, whose continued existence is possible only thanks to rigorous conservation measures (in fact, despite being famed for its big cats (pantherines), Africa is only home to 2 of the 7 extant big cats: lions & leopards. Asia on the other hand is home to 6: lions, leopards, tigers, snow leopards, clouded leopards, and Sunda clouded leopards).

Sadly, such a sight has been lost to time. Hunting and poaching led to the extinction of the Caucasian wisent in 1921. The wisent species has been a victim of rampant hunting since ancient times, from food to trophies and even drinking horns. Although the species' population is a little more stable now, only 1 out of 3 subspecies survives to this day, which represents the loss of 2 distinct genetic lineages forever.

The Caspian tiger survived till as recently as the 1970s. There are people right here on DA, who were born around the time Caspian tigers roamed Asia, and whose grandparents or parents would've seen one at a zoo much like how any of us would see a Bengal or Siberian or Sumatran tiger at a zoo today (let that sink in). It too met its demise for the same reasons as the Caucasian wisent.

Ironically, although this year is being celebrated as the year of the tiger according to the Chinese zodiac calendar, it is the demand for tiger body parts for traditional Chinese medicine that is threatening their existence. Most of us don't consume tiger bone wine or some other questionable concoction, but have you (or a friend) ever had the chance to get up close and personal with a tiger? Maybe pet it & take a few selfies for a social media post? If yes, then congratulations, you just contributed to tiger endangerment!
There are lots of parks, resorts, & even hotels across the world where people are given the opportunity to hold a tiger cub or take a pic with a tiger. Though they claim to support tiger conservation, they really don't. These tigers are drugged to make them docile, declawed, and have their cubs are taken away at such a young age that their immune systems don't develop properly, causing them to die in a few months. If they do survive, once they become teenagers & too big to hold, they're usually killed and their parts sold on the black market.
Of the 2 extant tiger subspecies, the mainland tiger and the Sunda island tiger (Panthera tigris sondaica), the Bengal tiger population is the only one that's not critically endangered. But with a wild population of about 3,400 in increasingly fragmented habitats, it's not out of the woods yet.
The Sunda island tiger is survived only by the Sumatran tiger. As of posting this, I have about 3 times as many watchers on DA as there are Sumatran tigers in the world, which is scary.
We can only hope that this year of the tiger is more than just a meaningless gesture, or else, the tiger will become just as much a creature of fantasy as the dragon.

Side note: this was the first time I tried projection painting, and I could not be happier with the results. Such detail and realism but with relatively little effort. Only caveat though is that it's only usable from certain angles