In time the cubs learn which animals are the best prey and how to catch them. But it takes lots of practice to become a good hunter. Most cubs will be one to two years old before they are ready to leave their mother. Clouded leopards may become independent as early as ten months. Lions can take about three years. A female lion cub will often stay with her pride as she becomes an adult. But the young of other big cats leave their mothers. Young females often establish a hunting ground close to that of their mother, while male cubs travel much farther away. Male lions and tigers have been known to wander one hundred miles from where they were born. A male puma observed in Connecticut was found to have walked from its birthplace in South Dakota, more than fifteen hundred miles away.
A tiger’s stripes hide it well among long grasses. Each animal’s coat has a pattern that is as unique as a human fingerprint.This cub is less than two years old, so it is not yet independent from its mother.
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