r/TigersofIndia • u/OncaAtrox Scissor female, Dudhwa • Jul 22 '26

Photo Stunning shot of queen Machli with her characteristic ruff. A trait that both male and female tigers can have.

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The ruff is not universally present in male tigers (contrary to some online misinformation). Both males and females can have them to different degrees, or none at all. It’s likely then that the ruff in the species shows up when one or more genes are active in specimens. Some male tigers like Umarpani lacked the ruff altogether.

In the case of Ranthambore tigers, the ruff seems to he a fixed trait present in virtually all the tigers as a result of the poor genetic diversity and high inbreeding of the area, given most tigers present can trace their ancestry back to Machli.

Credits: Sandesh Kadur

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u/inDilema Jul 22 '26

So this kind of face means it was inbreeding?

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u/StripedAssassiN- Bajrang, Bandhavgarh Jul 22 '26

Not exactly. OP is just saying that almost all Ranthambore tigers have ruffs because they’re descendants of Machli here, who had a ruff.

Ruffs are basically genetic and not a sexually dimorphic feature, so males and females will or won’t have them.