By AP/Bill Raack, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Max the Tiger has died.
The 17-year old Siberian was the oldest resident of the St. Louis Zoo's "Big Cat Country." He was found dead Monday, the apparent victim of kidney disease.
Max sired six offspring that are currently at zoos across the country, including one female at the St. Louis Zoo.
The Siberian tiger is a type of Amur tiger, of which there are fewer than 450 in the forests of eastern Russia, North Vietnam and northeastern China. There are about 550 Amur tigers in captivity.