Tigers' future not burning so bright this lunar year

As the Year of the Tiger nears, the world's endangered wild tigers are also getting their 15 minutes in the media spotlight.

And they need it. WWF currently estimates there are 3,200 wild tigers worldwide, an all-time low, with just 30 remaining in China. Wildlife Conservation Society, another US-based environmental group, puts Chinese wild tiger numbers at around 50.

And by 2022, the next Year of the Tiger, many wild tiger populations in Asia could drop below the point of no return if poaching, illegal hunting and habitat destruction are allowed to continue, experts say. 

Going... going... gone?

Looking at today’s figures, it’s hard to imagine there were 100,000 wild tigers just a century ago. The 3,200 tigers left in the wild occupy just 7 percent of their historic range, and three tiger subspecies have disappeared in the past 100 years. 

“The South China Tiger, which hasn't been seen in the wild in 25 years, is considered functionally extinct,” says WWF director of media relations Lee Poston.

Wild tigers are currently scattered across 13 tiger range states, with 43 percent in India and the rest in countries including China, Russia, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Reasons for their disappearance are similar across the board. “Poaching, logging, forest fires and inadequate law enforcement,” says Poston. “Their bones, meat and fur are highly prized on the black market for everything from traditional Asian medicine and tiger wine, to traditional fur coats in the Tibetan Autonomous Region."

Rampant deforestation and urban encroachment in India, Russia, Bangladesh, Mekong Region, Indonesia and Malaysia make it harder for the cats, which need a wide terrain and large populations of prey to survive, experts say. 

But there is some hope. Asia’s 13 tiger range countries committed to double the number of wild tigers by 2022 at last month’s World Bank-backed Global Tiger Initiative, starting with expanding tiger habitats in Nepal and stepping up wildlife patrol programmes in Hua Hin, Thailand. A global tiger summit hosted by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and World Bank President Robert Zoellick will be held in Vladivostok, Russia, this September.

And in China, where the demand for tiger products ranks among the world’s highest, the State Forestry Administration issued a directive last December calling for stronger enforcement against the illegal trade, and better habitat management. 

Getting lucky with tiger-sighting

So is there any chance of seeing these dwindling creatures in their natural homes? Yes, there is. “Your best bet is to go to tiger reserves in India with good tiger density like Ranthambore and Corbett national parks,” says Poston.

But timing is key. It’s difficult to spot a tiger when the grasses are tall. And their wide ranging and solitary movements make them hard to detect. 

Keep an eye out for tiger-spotting trips offered by conservationist groups.

Helping them survive

There are ways to be an armchair conservationist, when it comes to wild tigers. The simplest is simply to refuse to buy or trade in tiger products and medicine, a practice outlawed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. You can also contribute to conservation funds via the WWF and WCS.

“People should let their leaders know they expect them to agree to strong protections at the (Global Tiger Summit),” Poston adds.