Welcome to the Moonlight Library’s 30 Day Animorphs Challenge!
Despite Project Animorphs in 2013, I clearly do not talk about Animorphs enough.
This particular challenge is taken from the Heck Yeah Tumblr Challenges archive on Tumblr.

Day 3: Your favourite morph:

Jake’s Siberian tiger

I’ve always had a soft spot for tigers, seeing as how I was born in the Chinese year of the tiger. I barracked for a tiger football team. I patted one once. I would love to have a cuddle with one, all growly and doing the trust system and letting it put my arm in its mouth.

I have a massive soft spot for all kinds of cats and I own two, one big tomcat and a small furry girl. I’m not sure why tigers are my favourite of all the cats – maybe because I’m quite large for a woman and I’ve always liked the biggest breeds of animals.

Jake morphs his Siberian tiger in the first book and it quickly becomes his battle morph. I love the way he feels as he transforms, from the beautiful fur to the long teeth to the sharp claws extending form his hands like Wolverine (not really but just go with it). I love his power and his ability.

When Jake fights David in lion morph, he ultimately loses because the lion has a thick mane protecting his jugular. I’ve since done a lot of research on actual lion/tiger fights and found that a real wild Siberian tiger would win against a real wild African lion for a few reasons:

1. Tigers are not social animals so they are more viscous in fights. Believe it or not, lions are forced to be more ‘polite’ because of their family structure.
2. Tigers, although bigger and heavier, are lower to the ground, so can launch up into a lion far more powerfully.
3. Male lions do not hunt because their big manes give them away. They only fight other male lions, so a tiger has much more experience in fighting.
4. A tiger is physically more powerful.
5. A Siberian tiger is evolved for cold climates and thus have layers of body fat to protect them than lions do not.

I believe that the reason Jake lost his fight against David is for a few reasons:

1. Jake didn’t actually want to kill David because he’s ultimately a good guy. David wanted to kill Jake. Even though Jake was looking for the jugular, and even though he believed David had killed Tobias, I still believe Jake was only trying to maim him. It’s hard to kill someone who can regenerate by morphing, anyway.
2. Jake had to take the brunt of the attack because he was standing on glass.
3. I’m can’t remember if it was actually the glass that cut Jake or David’s teeth.
4. Jake didn’t really let the tiger’s instincts rise up because he was too mad and desperate. If Jake let the tiger take over, David would have been defeated.
5. Jake got in the first good bite but David’s mane stopped him.

In the final book, Jake’s tiger morph is incorrectly referred to as a Bengal tiger, not a Siberian tiger. There are separate species identifiable by colour, size, and habitat. The Siberians are built for the cold, and the Bengals are built for heat.

In the TV series, Jake morphs a white Bengal tiger. Rachel’s battle morph is the lion.

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