3-1 (11)
release dates: January 15-21
Mini Spy . . .
TM
Mini Spy and Basset Brown are watching a tiger and her
cubs at the zoo. See if you can find: • ice cream cone
• word MINI • pencil
• fish
• ladder
• ice pop
• dragon
• slice of bread• cheese
• candy cane • hamburger • jester hat wedge
• watering can • paint roller • sea horse
• sailboat
© 2011 Universal Uclick
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
A World Without Tigers?
Tigers in Trouble
photo by Steve Winter/National Geographic
Harmful humans
Lack of food
People are the reason tigers are
threatened. Humans have caused
trouble for tigers in three ways:
• killing of tigers,
• overhunting of prey,
• habitat loss or habitat breakup.
People eat the same foods tigers eat,
such as deer and wild pigs, or boar.
As people have spread into the tigers’
habitat, they have killed most of the
tigers’ food for themselves.
Then hungry tigers have eaten cows
and other livestock and scared people.
Killing tigers
Sometimes people kill tigers because
they are afraid or because the tigers
are eating farm animals.
But the biggest reason people kill
tigers is to get their body parts to sell.
Many people in Asia believe eating
tiger parts will give them some of the
tiger’s power. China is the largest
market for tiger parts today.
Poachers (PO-chers), or people who
hunt illegally, kill tigers to make a
profit.
China
Vietnam
India
Thailand
Malaysia
map courtesy Panthera
Myanmar
In the last 100 years, tigers have lost about
93 percent of their range, or area they occupy.
The lighter shaded areas show the tigers’
range a century ago. The darkened areas
show the tigers’ range today. They now live
in the wild in only 13 countries in Asia.
Meet Garrett Hedlund
photo © Disney Enterprises Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Garrett Hedlund stars as Sam in the
Disney movie “TRON: Legacy.” He has
acted in the TV series “Friday Night
Lights.” He has also acted in movies,
including “Eragon,” and has worked as
a model.
Garrett, 26, was born in Roseau,
Minn. He grew up on a farm with his
older brother and sister. He moved with
his family to Scottsdale, Ariz., when he was in ninth grade.
He began taking acting lessons in Scottsdale. He also
participated in high school track, wrestling and football, as
well as ice skating.
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
TM
This tiger roams in the
Kaziranga National Park
in India.
Tigers prefer to hunt
between sundown and
sunrise. They might roam
from 6 to 20 miles a night
hunting for prey to eat.
Supersport: Andrew Luck
Habitat loss
People have destroyed much of the
tigers’ historical habitat. They have
cut down forests and constructed
buildings within tiger habitat.
Sometimes people have moved into
the middle of
tiger habitat, so
the tigers cannot
reach prey or
other tigers to
mate with.
People all over the world are
very worried about the tiger. It is
against the law in every country to
kill a tiger, because tigers are an
endangered species.
In November, world leaders and
conservation groups met in Russia
to figure out how to save the tiger.
Leaders hope to double the number
of tigers in the wild by 2022.
Governments, especially those in
countries where tigers still roam,
have promised their full support.
There once
were nine
types, or
subspecies,
of tigers.
Three of
those types
are already
extinct.
photo by Steve Winter/National Geographic
The tiger is the biggest cat in the
world. Some male Siberian tigers can
weigh as much as 570 pounds. They
can stretch from 7 to 12 feet long.
It is the only big cat with stripes.
The stripes help the tiger blend into
forests and tall grasses. It hides in
the vegetation, stalking its prey until
it gets close enough to pounce.
Tigers have powerful teeth and
claws. An adult tiger can kill an
animal four times bigger than itself.
Taking immediate steps
We can save tigers if we can keep
them safe long enough for their
numbers to increase. Some of the
steps people around the world are
taking include:
• Panthera has helped set up the
world’s largest tiger preserve, about
the size of Vermont, in Myanmar.
• Thailand is paying for the foot
patrols protecting tigers there.
• Panthera’s Tigers Forever
program is helping to protect tigers
from the main threats across Asia.
TM
Tigers can live in a
variety of habitats,
including grasslands,
dense tropical forests,
or oak forests in
areas with temperate
climates (climates
where temperatures
don’t stay too hot or
too cold). Tigers do
need a good supply of
water and prey.
N
Each tiger has its own territory. It
hunts alone. Tigers come together to
mate, and then the male leaves.
The mom cares for the cubs on her
own. A mother tiger may have one to
five cubs per litter, but often all but
one or two die. Cubs stay with their
mom for about two years.
Daughter tigers often set up their
own territory near their mother’s.
Tigers keep away from one another’s
territory. But there are bigger home
ranges where tigers might meet up
as they hunt.
Tigers mark their territory by
spraying urine. They also have scent
glands in their faces and feet. They
rub their faces against trees to mark
their area and let other tigers know
where they are.
The tiger is a symbol, or sign, of
beauty and power throughout the
world. In fact, the year 2022 is the
next Chinese Year of the Tiger.
That is the world’s goal year for
doubling tiger numbers. It is also
the year tigers could vanish from the
wild if nothing is done to save them.
Tammy: Why did the tiger refuse to play
cards with the other big cat?
Tess: Because he was a cheetah!
Terry: What is the difference between a zoo
and a restaurant?
Tawny: The zoo has a man-eating tiger and the
restaurant has a man eating burger!
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
try ’n
find
Tigers
Words that remind us of tigers are hidden in the block below. Some
words are hidden backward or diagonally. See if you can find: ASIA, BIG,
CAT, CHINA, ECOSYSTEM, ENDANGERED, EXTINCT, FORESTS,
GRASSLANDS, HABITAT, HUNT, POACHERS, POUNCE, PRESERVE,
RUSSIA, SAVE, STALK, STRIPES, TERRITORY, WILD.
Tigers
need our
help!
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from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
Ready Resources
Tigers don’t purr, but they make a kind of
chuffing sound in their throats when they
are happy.
The Mini Page thanks Andrea Heydlauff,
Panthera managing director, for help with Look through your newspaper for stories
this issue.
and pictures about tigers and other types
Next week, The Mini Page is about castles. of cats.
The Mini Page’s popular series of issues about each state is collected
here in a 156-page softcover book. Conveniently spiral-bound for ease
of use, this invaluable resource contains A-to-Z facts about each state,
along with the District of Columbia. Illustrated with colorful photographs
and art, and complete with updated information, The Mini Page Book of
States will be a favorite in classrooms and homes for years to come.
Timothy: Why do tigers eat raw meat?
Thomas: Because they don’t know how to cook!
Brown
Bassetews
N
e
Th nd’s
Hou
Beloved tiger
Book of States
All the following jokes have something in common.
Can you guess the common theme or category?
TM
Solitary animals
The Mini Page®
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
The Mini Page Staff
!
The tiger is a keystone
species. This means it is
an animal that the whole
ecosystem depends on.
(A keystone is a stone
at the top of an arch. It
holds the other pieces in
place.)
If the tiger were to
disappear, prey animals
such as deer would
increase. Too many deer
can spread disease and
eat crops.
Environmental groups and
national and local governments
are working together to set up
preserves, or protected areas, for
tigers. They are also working to
save forests and grasslands, and the
prey in those areas, so tigers can
reproduce safely.
Stopping poachers is one of the top
concerns. Caring people are raising
money for more guards and training
them to protect tigers from poachers.
Betty Debnam - Founding Editor and Editor at Large Lisa Tarry - Managing Editor Lucy Lien - Associate Editor Wendy Daley - Artist
EW
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
Time is running out
photo © Nick Garbutt
photo by Steve Winter/National Geographic
Male tigers need more territory than
females need.
Choco-Chip Pumpkin Muffins
You’ll need:
• 3 cups white or wheat flour • 1 cup canola oil
• 2 teaspoons baking powder • 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 11/2 cups chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
What to do:
1. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and spices in a large bowl.
Mix well.
2. Beat pumpkin, oil, sugar, applesauce and eggs in separate mixing bowl
until smooth.
3. Add the flour mixture gradually and stir until just moistened.
4. Add chocolate chips to mixture and gently fold in.
5. Line muffin tins with paper liners; fill each liner with batter until 3/4 full.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes until done. Makes 2 dozen.
You will need an adult’s help with this recipe.
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
photo © Nick Garbutt
Awesome power
Tigers need to eat an amount of
meat equal to about one deer a week.
If there is a lot of prey in an area,
tigers have smaller home ranges. For
example, in some reserves in India, a
tiger’s home range can be as small as
20 square miles.
But in areas where prey is scarce,
such as in the Russian Far East,
tigers need much more space. One
tiger may claim up to almost 800
square miles of land for itself.
Rookie Cookie’s Recipe
Coming together for tigers
A Majestic Creature
Hunting habits
TM
Saving the Tiger
Height: 6-4 Weight: 235 Hometown: Houston, Texas
Andrew Luck drops back, scans the opponent’s defense,
then spirals a pass into a Stanford receiver’s hands.
The Cardinal quarterback has executed that play
with such frequency that it seems automatic. In leading
Stanford to an 11-1 regular-season record, Luck completed
an amazing 70.2 percent of his passes for 3,051 yards and
28 touchdowns.
The scholarly junior is one of college football’s premier quarterbacks and
an honor student majoring in architectural design.
On and off the field, Andrew is following in the footsteps of his father,
Oliver Luck, who was a Rhodes scholar, a former pro quarterback and the
current athletic director at West Virginia.
Stanford was fortunate to recruit him. The Cardinals won 11 games this
year not because of sheer luck, but largely because of Andrew Luck.
from The Mini Page © 2011 Universal Uclick
photo © Nick Garbutt
If you were going to pick one of the
most magnificent animals on Earth,
what would you choose? The tiger
would be many people’s top choice.
In fewer than 20 years, tigers could
disappear from the wild. In the last
century, tigers have suffered a sharp
drop in numbers. Today there are
fewer than 3,200 tigers outside zoos.
One hundred years ago, there were
about 100,000.
Scientists say there is still hope, but
people need to act now.
The Mini Page talked with the managing
director of Panthera, a group working
to save the world’s big cats, to learn
more about the endangered tiger.
The Mini Page provides ideas for
websites, books or other resources that will help
you learn more about this week’s topics.
On the Web:
• www.panthera.org/species/tiger
• www.tigersforever.org
• www.mnh.si.edu/exhibits/mammals/Tiger.HTM
At the library:
• “Endangered Tigers” by Bobbie Kalman
• “Tigers” by Rachael Hanel
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