Region
Final roars
It might be the Chinese year of the ox, but tigers seem to be getting most of the press these days, and justifiably so. According to statements made at the recent Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop – a gathering of experts from across the world – the population of the big cat in 14 'tiger range' countries (including Bhutan, Bangladesh, China, India, Nepal, China and Burma) has fallen from 100,000 to just 3500 over the past century. The gathered representatives made a commitment to doubling the current tiger population in the coming century, though how exactly this will happen remains unclear. One way or another, the gathered experts warned, if urgent collaborative efforts are not made soon, tigers of all sub-species will almost certainly become extinct.
Unfortunately for the disappearing cats, tigers' predators are a growing human population – particularly Chinese consumers, who seek their organs for medicinal purposes and their skins as decoration. While a 1993 international ban on trade in tiger parts still holds today, the smuggling of animal parts and skins of endangered animals continues – especially across the barely manned Nepal-China border from other parts of Southasia, namely India. The economics make doing anything about this trade exceedingly difficult, however. A single tiger skin is said to sell for around USD 1000 in the Nepali market, but ten times more by the time it arrives in China. Nepal is currently pushing China to sign an agreement to jointly monitor the frontier for tiger contraband.
Amidst the gloom, there was some positive news out of Bangladesh. The country is thought to be home to the world's largest remaining tiger population, and its national forest department is now drafting its first comprehensive plan to protect the Royal Bengal Tiger. Further, some experts have suggested that working to save the tiger would also help to save the broader Sundarban mangrove, which represent almost half of the country's remaining wild lands. The Tiger Action Plan thus aims to save 300-500 tigers, in addition to recognising the Sundarban and the rest of the country's coastal green belt as being critical for the overall protection of the country, particularly in light of predicted impact of climate change. In this case, what is good for humans is indeed good for tigers.