Last Thursday, white tigers attacked and killed a Malaysian working as a cleaner in the Singapore Zoo after the man jumped into their enclosure. It was reported in the papers that the man, apparently showing signs of distress and uneasiness, leapt into the moat of the white tiger exhibit and was attacked. The attack happened in full view of a number of people who tried to distract the tigers away from the man by throwing rocks at them. Keepers and other zoo workers managed to pull the man away when the tigers went back to their den obviously distracted by the raucous crowd. The man, however, died on the way to the hospital.
An endangered species, white tigers are mostly found in the wild in South Asia, predominantly in India. A full grown white tiger could weigh over 100 kg and 8 feet from nose to tail. Their distinctive color is actually due to a genetic condition that strips their fur of the orange pigment, leaving the animal with snow white fur, black stripes and blue eyes.
The zoo has temporarily closed the tiger exhibit.
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