Highest Recorded Age of the Liger Ever
The highest recorded age of the liger is believed to be of Shasta the liger. Shasta was a female liger who lived for24 years. Shasta the liger was born at Hogle Zoo in Utah State of USA during 1948. Shasta the liger died during 1972. In 1972, Shasta was the only liger in the world. Her 23rd birthday was celebrated by a lot of folks and there is a video of her as well regarding that birthday on youtube. Because of her highest age record, the authorities in USA decided to honor her by preserving her dead body. Her body was preserved by Utah State University and she was later shifted to Bean Museum where you can still go and watch Shasta the liger standing like real liger.
So a female liger holds the record among ligers to live highest and longest. What about a male liger? Did any male liger live long enough? The answer is yes. In Germany from 1990 to 2010, there were 3 ligers at Zoo Arche Noah at Gromitz area. Their male liger named as Bahia the liger lived for 20 years. Therefore; the age of Bahia the liger from Germany is considered as the highest among male ligers. But this age of a male liger is still 4 years less than that of Shasta the liger who lived for 24 years. Another male liger named as Patrick the liger from USA, lived for around 18 years.
So what's the normal age of a big cat? Normally in the wild big cats both and tigers live for around 10 to 12 years. However; within both of lions and tigers live for around 15 years as they receive better care and food within proper captivity. Ligers within captivity also live for around 15 years. So the 24 years age of Shasta the liger is a big difference with the normal age and it is a huge record which may hardly be broken by any other liger. But keep in mind that we only had fewer specimens about ligers so far, therefore; there might be more to discover about the highest age of a liger.
Regarding the age of the ligers, there are a lot of myths and fallacies that ligers do not live long or they die very young. These myths are absolutely wrong and these myths are part of the negative propaganda by some so called Animal Rights Activists who are personally against ligers. In our studies so far, we have concluded that average ages of the ligers are around 15 years. Furthermore; the highest recorded age of the liger also serves as a biggest proof that ligers live as normal and as long as possible and there are no age barriers for ligers to live.
No wild liger has ever been recorded. So the age of the ligers from wild perspective will be an impossible task. However; there are possibilities of wild ligers especially within the Gir Forest of India. Also there are some stories within folk tales of Singapore, which specifically reflect the presence of this gigantic beast and the terror it created to the local people. Some people believe that ligers may not be able to live in wild, therefore; they may die very soon and may have a very small lifespan. However; we believe that as long as sufficient food supplies will be available for a liger in a wild, he will be able to live harmless in a wild without any life threat from the rivals. About food; a liger in the wild can prey on a buffalo on its own because of its strength and sheered power. So its existence in the wild can never be denied but for counting its age within wild we will still need a real liger living in the wild.
Hercules the liger currently as of 2015 is around 13 years old. Hercules the liger has 3 more brothers (Zeus, Vulcan and Sinbad) who are also 13 years old as well. If we add the ages of these 4 ligers combine we can truly get an age figure of 52 years combine. This age of 52 years as of 2015 should also be considered as a highest recorded age of the liger brothers combined. No other liger brothers are recorded to be having that much longer aggregate age. However; history will still judge the age of Shasta the liger as the highest ever recorded age for a liger.
