How The White Tiger Mates

The White female tigress is mature enough to reproduce when they a are from 3 to 4 years of age. The White male tiger matures at 4 to 5 years. At this time, the females go through an estrous cycle, which is the animal version of menstruation.

The female signals her readines to mate by leaving strong smelling urine or feces markings along her territory. In addition she may roar, and moan to indicate her location. A female will try her fullest to reach a male until her cycle has ended or a male has called back to her.

When a male returns her call, they will usually meet and play fight for a few minutes. After this the male will mount the female and copulate. The brief act occurs continually for up to seven days to ensure the copulation has fertilized the egg in the tigress. After many attempts, the male will leave the tigress to move on to a new mate.

White Tiger Fertilization

Fertilization in mammals such as the White Tiger is generally the same as fertilization in human beings. The egg must come in contact with the sperm and through that process a new life is created.

The offspring of mammals are not born immediately after the parents have mated. In the fertilization of mammals, a period of development is necessary. This period is called gestation (in humans we call it pregnancy). Gestation takes place in an organ in the female called the uterus.

This special organ is found beside the abdomen, close to the ovaries where the eggs are produced. In order for fertilization to occur, the sperm of the male is released into the female's vagina, and travels through the uterus until it goes up the oviduct, reaching the ovary where the egg is released. Once it reaches the oviduct, the egg and the sperm meet and fertilization occurs through the formation of a zygote.

Once the zygote begins traveling through the oviduct, it will start dividing until it becomes a blastocyte. After the blastocyte reaches the uterus, it adheres to the thin lining known as the endometrium. This process is called implantation. At this point the female tiger is said to be pregnant and this signals the beginning of gestation where an embryo develops and grows. The Gestation period, lasts for 103 days ( 3 Months), after which the tigress will give birth, on average, one to six cubs.

Zygote in the White Tiger

A zygote is a cell that comes from the process of fertilization. For example, an egg from a female tiger and a sperm coming from the male tiger combine into a diploid cell called the zygote.

In mammals the blend of the sperm with the ovacyte takes place in the fallopian tube resulting into a diploid zygote. The zygote then merges into the uterus wall. After a period of time, the zygote undergoes meitotic cell division to soon develop into a embryo.