Hello all friends,
Jaguar and Tiger, which one really has the stronger bite force?
I will answer this question
as well as other questions about the bite force of species in the cat family
in this video.
Which big cat has the strongest bite?
BBC Wildlife section editor Sarah McPherson answers your wild question.
The jaguar has the strongest bite of any big cat relative to its size.
Research by Adam Hartstone-Rose and colleagues at the University of South Carolina,
who compared the bite forces of nine different cat species,
reveals that a jaguar's bite force is only three-quarters as strong as a tiger's bite force.
However, given that jaguars are considerably smaller
(the body mass of the individual in the study was only half that of the tiger),
relatively speaking their bite is stronger.
“If you had to choose, you’d want to be bitten by a jaguar, not a lion or a tiger.
But pound for pound, jaguars pack a stronger punch,” says Adam.
“The strength of the jaguar’s bite is due to the arrangement of its jaw muscles,
which, relative to weight, are slightly stronger than those of other cats.
In addition – also relative to weight – its jaws are slightly shorter,
which increases the leverage for biting.”
These two modifications, though minor,
combine to give the jaguar the strongest relative bite force.
Indeed, a jaguar can bite straight through the skull of its prey,
and pierce the thick skin of a caiman with ease.
The bite force of a jaguar is around 1500 psi (680 kg),
and that of a tiger is around 1000 psi (454 kg).
But the tiger's bite force is still stronger
because the tiger is more than twice the size of the jaguar.
Its jaws are accordingly larger, and the fangs are larger,
so the area in contact with the bitten surface is also bigger.
For example, the jaguar's fangs have a contact area of only 1 cm2,
but the tiger's fangs have an area of up to 2 cm2,
and in the end, the tiger still bites harder than the jaguar.
Similarly, for example, if a hippo's bite force is only 1000 psi,
its bite is still much more powerful than that of a tiger
because the surface area it bites is much larger.
Jaguars are considered the most durophagous species among all felids,
and unsurprisingly diet preference is one of the if not the most influential factor
that forces an organism to evolve certain traits.
Especially in the craniofacial region where it comes down to processing said diet.
The current value for Panthera onca is around the 1500psi mark.
But do not take that as a cemented value.
Numbers differ in relation to a plethora of factors.
Eg male or female, large or small size.
Now, why do Jaguars possess such a strong bite relative to body size?
First of all,
the notion that asserts that felid species predominantly preferring relatively large prey
have longer masticatory muscle fibers,
and the correspondence of these fibers to jaw gape, is not to be ignored in this scenario.
Now, as many studies proclaim,
interspecific differences in food material properties such as hardness, toughness
and firmness directly influence interspecific variation in the jaw adductor
where a larger mass of said muscle group is required to break down this tougher food
compared to the same level of breakdown for food that is softer in comparison.
So naturally, the organism in question will put up more mass in the area required.
It has to, because the survival of its species depends on it.
Contrary to popular belief, Jaguars do not always tend to go for the skull bite,
they go for the nape of the neck and break the spine, quite similar to Tigers,
who also tend to crush the spine posterior to the atlas.
For easy and effective dispatching of prey via the throat bite,
the skull and mandible wrap around the nape of the neck.
This is a major factor, because the larger the prey animal,
the longer these muscles must stretch and retain the strength at the same time.
So a relatively bigger prey, requires a bigger gape,
which again result in a proportionately stronger musculature compared to felids
that primarily bite the underside of the throat.
And this is exactly why lions tend to be weaker and fall behind
tigers are jaguars in terms of pure masticatory bite force.
(Relative to the size of course)
Note the presence of solid,
prominent bulging masticatory muscles resulting in a fuller and rounder face.
In addition, there is another factor that determines the bite force value;
Hylander proposed that chewing muscles scale solely to food properties
and not body size but later this claim was refuted,
saying that food property is one of the reasons
and body mass does indeed play a role.
And this is exactly why a large 400 lb male lion
will have a greater bite force compared to a large 198 lb jaguar,
given to sheer mass and bulk alone as stated earlier.
But when you consider the force output relative to proportion,
the lion just falls flat on its face.
So there you go,
please do not go about spilling childish jape like a jaguar will demolish a male lion
or a male Bengal tiger given its "superior bite force"
I assure you it will not demolish them unless you scale them to equal sizes.
Anyway, as per muscular anatomy goes,
jaguars and tigers have incredibly robust and hefty masseter
and temporalis muscles relative to body mass.
To finally conclude and recap:
The positive allometry in the PCSA and BF
explicitly states that heavily muscled felids with bigger skulls,
as well as larger and tougher prey preferences relative to their own body size
(Jaguar and Tiger),
are biologically adapted to produce relatively higher forces.
Surprisingly, the soft tissue masticatory capability in tigers is
even higher than that of the jaguar even relative to body size.
However, the solid combination of masticatory PCSA
and jaw leverages is what gives the jaguar an overall better bite output relative to size.
The aforementioned statement concerned with anatomy paired with the prey preference
as well as the preferred killing method come all together,
fitting like pieces of a puzzle
and state exactly why the jaguar commands this incredibly lethal crushing bite.
Needless to say, the Jaguar packs a punch way above its weight.
A truly formidable predator.
Why is a tiger's bite more effective than a lion's?
Although both species possess a quite similar bite force,
the jaw structure of the tiger and lion is slightly different,
and the bite force value will be different depending on the position of the tooth type.
Lions have 3.2 in. canines and heavy pressure jaws.
Has a bite force of ~1000 PSI.
Has more well developed incisors and molars
thus, a stronger bite force at the molars.
Tigers have wide mouth that has strong teeth 3.6 in. canines.
Also has a bite force of ~1000 PSI,
but the larger sagittal crest on top of the skull gives it a more powerful bite at the canines.
So it is clear that with the larger and longer canine size,
as well as the greater bite force at the fangs,
the tiger's bite is more effective than the lion's in killing prey.
Thanks to that, tigers can still kill quite large crocodiles
while lions can only kill small crocodiles.
By the way, I'll list a few of the bite forces of other notable predators:
The bite force of spotted hyenas reaches about 1000-1100 psi.
The bite force of leopards is about 700-785 psi.
The cougar's bite force reaches about 400-700 psi.
The bite force of cheetahs is about 400-500 psi.
And as I said, the bite force of each individual will vary according to the sex,
health status, age, and weight of each animal.
A large male can easily have twice the bite force of a small female
or an immature male.
Why is the bite force of feline species so variable according to different sources on the internet:
The answers are usually arrived at by measured bite strength
and the theory of how strong their jaw muscles are
and how much power is needed for their different hunting styles.
Jaguars often penetrate skulls,
while tigers tend to strangulate with a throat or neck bite.
Some would say to, puncture skulls you need more power.
Looking at physiology can also give some hints to strength as we compare it
with other species with a strong bite.
Measurement of a bite has various criticisms, though.
• How can we be sure it is biting at maximum strength while measuring?
It could be a temperament thing how hard you can get them to bite.
Even if measuring on a prey, does the animal bite at max pressure if not needed?
We animals tend to try and conserve energy where possible.
• Bite force varies among individuals in the species,
for example, sex, age, body condition, and weight of each animal.
So it is a combination of measurement and guesswork,
often by very knowledgeable and qualified people.
That's all for today,
thanks for watching my clip, see you!