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“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Highlands/Perkins in Baton Rouge in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana — The American South (West South Central)
 

Mike the Tiger - History

 
 
Mike the Tiger - History Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cajun Scrambler, November 10, 2018
1. Mike the Tiger - History Marker
Panel 1
Inscription.
Panel 1
About our Tiger
Other mascots were proposed during the first 40 years of LSU's football team, but the tiger mascot stuck. From 1896 to 1924, students made paper-maché tigers that they took to football games; however, these man-made mascots were quickly destroyed by opposing fans. On October 21, 1936 , Mike I arrived, named in honor of Athletic Department trainer Chellis "Mike" Chambers, the man most responsible for bringing him to LSU.

1936-1956
Mike I
Originally known as "Sheik" at the time of his purchase, his name was changed to Mike to honor Mike Chambers who served as LSU's athletic trainer when the first mascot was purchased. Mike I reigned for 20 years before dying of pneumonia.

1956-1958
Mike II
The second Mike served a brief reign, lasting only through the 1957 season before dying of pneumonia in the spring of 1958.

1958-1976
Mike III
Just in time for the 1958 national championship season Mike III was brought in and served as a mascot for 18 seasons, dying after the only losing season of his reign as LSU posted a 5-6 record in 1975

1976-1990
Mike IV
Mike IV reigned over Tiger athletics for 14 years and retired at the Baton Rouge Zoo in 1990. Mike IV was euthanized due to poor health in March of 1995 at the age of 20.

1990-2007
Mike

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V

Mike V was introduced to LSU fans at a basketball game against Alabama in February of 1990. He officially began his reign on April 30, 1990, when he was moved into the tiger habitat across from Tiger Stadium. Mike V died on May 18, 2007, at the age of 17.

2007-Present
Mike VI
Mike VI arrived in Baton Rouge on Aug. 25, 2007. The Bengali Siberian mix, formerly known as "Roscoe," reigned over a football national title in his first year and most recently, a 2011 Southeastern Conference championship and perfect regular season.

Panel 2
Mike VI & His Habitat

About the Area
Mike VI was born July 23, 2005, and came to LSU when he was two years old. At the time of his arrival at LSU, he weighed 320 pounds. He will eventually reach a weight of about 500 pounds. Mike VI was donated to LSU by a rescue facility in Indiana.

Mike's habitat incorporates natural substrates, including grass, and also includes elements of LSU's renaissance architecture and facts educating Mike's visitors on the six living subspecies of tigers. The enclosure encompasses 13,000 square feet. Mike VI is most active early in the morning and in the evening; he sleeps most of the day, keeping cool in the shade. He receives about 100,000 visitors each year.

Mike's daily care is provided by two veterinary students. These students work with Mike for two years until they

Mike the Tiger - History Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cajun Scrambler, November 10, 2018
2. Mike the Tiger - History Marker
Panel 2
graduate from LSU. Mike also has a personal veterinarian from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, who oversees his overall healthcare and well-being. Mike eats 140 pounds of food weekly. His food is a formulated zoo carnivore diet.


Panel 3
Tigers in the Wild Conservation

An Endangered Species
Mike, LSU's beloved mascot, is not only a symbol of the university's school spirit and pride, but also a key in the education of the public about the preservation of tigers and the conservation of their habitat worldwide. 100,000 visitors come to see Mike each year. Mike the Tiger's new home is also a prime example of the research that is being conducted on keeping tigers in better habitats in captivity.
Until 1900, there were about 100,000 tigers living in the wild in Asia. There were eight subspecies that roamed from Turkey to the Caspian Sea and from southeastern Russia to the islands of Indonesia. Today, three of the subspecies are extinct (the Malayan subspecies was created from the Indochinese) and 90% of the world's wild tiger population is gone, leaving only approximately 3,200 wild tigers alive, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
The main reasons for the dramatic loss of tigers are hunting, loss of habitat, lack of food sources, and fragmentation of population groups reducing the number of breeding partners and weakening the gene pool.

Mike the Tiger - History Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cajun Scrambler, November 10, 2018
3. Mike the Tiger - History Marker
Panel 3
In the past, tigers were poached for their skins, but recently there has been a growing illegal market in tiger bones and other parts used in medicines in Asia.
 
Erected by Louisiana State University.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: AnimalsEducationSports.
 
Location. 30° 24.785′ N, 91° 11.112′ W. Marker is in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in East Baton Rouge Parish. It is in Highlands/Perkins. Marker is at the intersection of North Stadium Drive and West Stadium Road, on the right when traveling west on North Stadium Drive. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 16 North Stadium Drive, Baton Rouge LA 70803, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Chellis "Mike" Chambers (within shouting distance of this marker); Ken Kavanaugh, Sr. (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Roy "Moonie" Winston (about 400 feet away); Max Fugler (about 400 feet away); Billy Cannon (about 400 feet away); Sid Fournet (about 400 feet away); Gaynell "Gus" Tinsley (about 400 feet away); Marvin "Moose" Stewart (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Baton Rouge.
 
More about this marker. Located in front of the Mike the Tiger habitat between Tiger Stadium
Mike the Tiger - History Marker image. Click for full size.
November 10, 2018
4. Mike the Tiger - History Marker
Mike the Tiger History Kiosk
and the Maravich Assembly Center.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on November 20, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 21, 2018, by Cajun Scrambler of Assumption, Louisiana. This page has been viewed 243 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on November 21, 2018.

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Mar. 28, 2024