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http://www.spectatornews.com/media/paper218/news/2005/05/02/Showcase/Ligers.And.Tigons.And.Bears.oh.My-945536.shtml

Ligers and tigons and bears, 'Oh my'
Now-famous hybrid not truly bred for skills in magic
By Tom Ebnet
Published: Monday, May 2, 2005

My hope is that the majority of you reading this can determine the topic at hand from the obscure title - yep, ligers. My original intent for this article was to inform the general population at UW-Eau Claire that ligers, a cross between a male lion and female tiger, actually exist and the petty office and classroom arguments can cease.

The intent came shortly after the recent explosion of the movie "Napoleon Dynamite," which includes a scene concerning ligers.

The concept of ligers does seem foreign to most, and I must admit that when I first heard the term I was rather skeptical.

Chris Floyd, assistant professor and vertebrate zoologist in our biology department, also confessed, "I had just recently heard of their existence."

Floyd said he also plans to include ligers in his future mammalogy classes.

With the notion that ligers are real, and after speaking with zookeepers in Nevada and a few others, I now have much more information to divulge and the scoop on a male liger that resides at the Sierra Safari Zoo in Reno, Nev.

First, let's get the terms for the hybrids established. A male lion and a female tiger (tigress) produce a liger, if it's male, and a ligress if female. A male tiger and a female lion (lioness) produce a tigon. If these hybrids successfully mate with lions or tigers, which is extremely rare due to the seemingly inherent sterility that occurs with hybridization, li-ligers, ti-ligers, li-tigons and ti-tigons are the result.

It is estimated that only 20 to 30 ligers exist worldwide; this is because their arrival usually happens by chance in captivity. Most zookeepers and caretakers choose not to crossbreed out of respect, and the zoological demand has also stopped, however, limited cases of for-profit-crossbreeding are suspected. The low number of such cats is also due to the distance between lions and tigers' natural habitats and instinctual inhibitions that prevent them from mating in the wild.

However, when lions and tigers do successfully mate, the result is truly splendiferous. Such is the case with Hobbs, a 13-year-old liger known for his stature and tame temperament.

"If you were to see him, you would see a beautiful, magnificent animal," said Lori Acordagoitia, staff member at the Sierra Safari Zoo.

Hobbs measures more than 10 feet tall when on his hindquarters and weighs in at more than 900 pounds, but this, of course is after his diet, in which he lost 400 pounds. Even after acknowledging the weight-loss, one feels inclined to say, "Damn, that is one large kitty." And you would be correct in saying so because Hobbs weighs twice as much as the largest cat, the male Siberian tiger, whereas tigons are much more similar in size to that of tigers.

If that's not impressive, just consider the idea that Hobbs was thought of as the runt when he and his brother were born, and that he's working with reduced amounts of testosterone due to the hybridization. The low testosterone levels are also why all ligers are assumed sterile. But Hobbs does retain a hairdo that loosely resembles a mane, or a mullet, if you fancy.

Hopefully his tigress counterpart that shares his enclosure at the zoo appreciates his business-in-front, party-in-back demeanor. And if she doesn't, maybe she likes him for his tameness and his rapport with the local cubs, from what I'm told by his handlers at the zoo.

So maybe ligers really do encompass an intangible magic of their own and, depending upon your definition of magic, perhaps they are bred for their skills in magic. Either way, Hobbs remains the most popular attraction at the Sierra Safari Zoo, and ligers and tigons truly are wondrous creatures.

And for the record, my friends and I enjoy quoting "Napoleon Dynamite," but like all good things, only in moderation.

Ebnet is a senior kinesiology major and a columnist for The Spectator.