On the Brink of Extinction: Time is Running Out for Tigers
Time is running out for one of the world’s most beautiful, charismatic and powerful species, the tiger. According to conservationists, the wild tiger population has declined by 95 percent during the past century. Only 3,200 tigers, Panthera tigris, remain in the wild today.
In order to bring awareness to the urgent plight of these magnificent creatures, efforts to keep the big cats from extinction will be stepped up this year. Because the United Nations designated 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity and because 2010 is the Chinese Year of the Tiger, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has created a listing of the 10 most critically important endangered animals that require special monitoring. According to the IUCN Red List, three of the nine main subspecies, the Bali tiger, Caspian tiger and Javan tiger, are now extinct. And there has been no confirmed sighting of the South China tiger for 25 years.
According to the WWF, tigers will be placed at the top of the 10 most critically endangered animals listing, the Ten to Watch in 2010.
Ten to Watch in 2010 Listing:
1. Tiger
2. Polar Bear
3. Pacific Walrus
4. Magellanic Penguin
5. Leatherback Turtle
6. Bluefin Tuna
7. Mountain Gorilla
8. Monarch Butterfly
9. Javan Rhinoceros
10. Giant Panda
According to a WWF press release, five species on the list are directly impacted by climate change.
Tiger Threats
Threats to the tiger include poaching, habitat loss, deforestation and climate change. And illegal poaching 
of the tigers prey results in hungry tigers attacking livestock. In retaliation for lost livestock and human conflict, many tigers are shot, poisoned, snared and trapped.
Demand for Tiger Skins and Body Parts
Despite the fact tiger hunting is illegal worldwide; the demand for tiger skins and body parts remains high. Considered a status symbol and luxury item in some parts of the world, tiger skin is often used for décor and furniture while body parts are used as aphrodisiacs and medicinal purposes. And the trend of giving tiger parts as gifts or souvenirs is also growing.
Disturbing Practice of Tiger Farms
It is estimated 6,000 tigers live on 14 farms across China, producing up to 1,000 cubs annually. Despite a ban on trading body parts in China, the nation is pushing for an agreement to resume the disturbing trade. While officials argue tiger farming may lessen the pressure on the wild tiger population, others disagree. Judy Mills, coordinator of the International Tiger Coalition, said, “Their mere existence encourages demand for tiger parts. It is causing poachers and traders to stockpile skins and bones of wild tigers.” It is estimated that only 50 tigers currently remain in the wild China today.
Siberian tiger photo Lucie Arsenault
Bengali white tiger photo via Reanimator86
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To think that the Tiger would survive as a species if Chinese men were told about Viagra redefines tragic.
Dog Gift has given me another idea 1 Fake Tiger-part medicines ? who could get them into the market to flood it ? – with or without radio-active tracer incorperated. But until then somehow these people have to be dis-armed, or stopped from taking-away the Tiger’s prey. This would all require very serios commitment on the part of the Chinese, for instance, State.
Also, is there time to attempt to educate these sad halfwits to see that they are living in a world on the brink of calamity, and that their current actions push it that bit closer to the edge. When the tigers are all gone, the next generation will not be aware that anything is missing. And so on and so on. They will be just things in books – of one form or another.
Eating Tiger-parts is not medicine, it’s perversion and needs to be seen as such, or are these people really That hopeless ?. If so I would sugest sterilization as the appropriate response for being in the Tiger parts trade. Traditional Chines Medicine – apart from Acupuncture – is a total sham, and owes me 120 quid.
i don’t understand these Chinese or their “development”agenda.Their strange trade is costing other countries huge amount of money for conservation.