Ligers, Li-Ligers & Li3-Ligers

The Ligers, Li-ligers and the Li3-ligers are the trio of the hybrid big cats which have resulted from the hybridization of lion & tigress, lion & ligress and lion and li-ligress respectively. These hybrid big cats are also called the First Generation (Ligers), Second Generation (Li-ligers) and the Third Generation (Li3-ligers) hybrid big cats respectively. All of these hybrid big cats are fathered by a lion and at the core of these three big cats is the lion and the tigress hybridization.

The ligers, li-ligers and li3-ligers are the hybrid big cats that have resulted from the hybridization of lion & tigress, lion & ligress and lion & li-ligress. They are also called the 1st, 2nd & the 3rd generation hybrid big cats.

Almost a decade ago, people were only aware of the ligers and the tigons as part of the lion and tiger hybridization while considering them as sterile. However; a decade later both li-ligers and the li3-ligers have emerged as the part of the hybrid big cats. The births of the li-ligers and the li3-ligers also gave a clear and vivid indication that the female ligers are fertile while at the same time they have demolished the myth that the lion & tiger hybridization is sterile.

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Ligers belong to the top generation of hybrids within the lion and the tigress hybridization process. The world's first litter of liger cubs was born in India in 1799. Ligers are the biggest of all the big cats, as they weigh almost 900 pounds and 11 feet long. Tigers on the other hand are normally around 600 pounds in weight and they are about 10 feet in length. Lastly; the lions are almost 500 pounds in weight and their body length is about 8 to 9 feet long.

A liger is a hybrid big cat that results from the crossbreeding of a male lion and a tigress. Basically; it is the female ligers that give rise to the Li-ligers.

Currently; the biggest liger in the world is Hercules the liger who almost weighs 921 pounds with 11 feet long length. Hercules the liger has appeared twice within the Guinness Book of World Records. Male ligers are twice bigger than the female ligers, however; the female ligers can be as big as the tiger or the lion. Unlike the male ligers, the female ligers are fertile and they have successfully given births to the li-ligers and ti-ligers.

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A li-liger is also a hybrid big cat that results from the hybridization of lion and liger. The li-ligers have the male lion as their father and the female liger (ligress) as their mother. The li-ligers are also called the second generation hybrid big cats. The li-ligers are extremely rare and the world's first li-liger was born in 2012 at the Novosibirsk Zoo in Russia. It was the female li-liger and her name was Kiara the li-liger.

A li-liger is a second generation hybrid big cat and it has the male lion as its father and the female liger (ligress) as its mother. The world's first li-liger was born at Russia's Novosibirsk Zoo in 2012.

A li-liger has a lion like fur with huge dark brown spots resembling the spots of the leopards and jaguars. A li-liger can weigh around 700 to 800 pounds in weight. Male li-ligers are almost twice bigger than the female li-ligers. The world's biggest li-liger is Boco the Li-liger who lives at the Wynnewood Zoo, in Oklahoma, USA. Wynnewood zoo is the only zoo in the world to have both the male and the female li-ligers.

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A very unfamiliar and extremely rare hybrid big cat is called the Li3-liger. It also has a male lion as its father and a female Li-liger as its mother. The Li3-ligers are also a real proof that li-ligers are not sterile but rather fertile. Li3-ligers are also called the third generation hybrid big cats of the lion and tiger hybridization. The existence of the Li-Ligers show that there is no dead-end within hybridization.

Li3-ligers are the third generation hybrid big cats that result from the crossbreeding of a male lion and a female li-liger. The world's only Li3-ligers live at the Wynnewood Zoo in Oklahoma, USA.

The world's only Li3-liger lives at the Wynnewood Zoo in Oklahoma, USA. The zoo hasn't shared any picture of this Li3-liger yet but it is believed that the Li3-ligers almost look like a lion. The Wynnewood Zoo has also successfully bred Ti3-ligers and they are the ditto copy of a tiger.

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If we analyze the hybridization processes of these ligers, li-ligers and li3-ligers; we can conclude that all of these big cats are produced as viable offspring. The process seems to be very sleek and free of any genetic setbacks.

The hybridization of lion and tiger has the ability to create a chain of viable hybrid offspring in the form of ligers, li-ligers and li3-ligers.

Furthermore; since the lions and the tigers both have equal numbers of chromosomes (38 chromosomes), therefore; these hybrid offspring also have the same numbers of chromosomes as their parent ancestors i.e., the lions and the tigers. When parents have same numbers of chromosomes, it is highly likely that the resultant offspring such as the ligers, li-ligers and li3-ligers will not only be viable but also fertile as well.

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The hybridization to produce ligers, li-ligers and the li3-ligers can greatly contribute within animal sciences. It can further help the scientists in their exploration about the common and shared genetics within lions and tigers and how they evolved from a common ancestor. Recently; many researchers have claimed that exchange of genetics in between inter-related species can act as a panacea for many species in trouble.

Hybridization of inter-related species such as lions and tigers has opened a new chapter within animal sciences as it may help the species to exchange the fortifying genes.

For example through hybridization it is very likely that certain species may inherit fortifying genes from its closely related species. This may help the species to fight against any disease or adapt to certain environment which the species originally may not be able to cope with. Therefore; there is a lot of hope in hybridization and its possible continuation may help the researchers to have a hand-on knowledge in future when animals' territorial ranges are specifically shrinking.

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