2010 - Year of Rescue of a Tiger

2010 - Year of Rescue of a Tiger

It is not just a beast of prey The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the greatest beast of prey, the symbol of mystery and beauty of the wild, an inseparable part of folklore, religion, culture of Asian peoples. The tiger is an ideal indicator of biovariety, but nowadays it is on the verge of extinction.

Tiger – The past and the present Change of population in time 1900 100 000 tigers 1970 35000 tigers 2010 3500 tigers

The destruction of habitat The cedar is the source of food in the Far-Eastern taiga, the wild boar depends on it, following the boar the tiger does. The more boars, wild goats, deer, the more food the tiger gets. They are the main food for the tiger, what’s more the main shelter for it is thick bushes and wind fallen trees. Illegal hunting and felling trees have a negative influence on a tiger population. Poaching : despite active struggle against poaching, a commodity market of derivatives and preparations from them continues to exist. Situation modelling shows that at annual shooting of individuals of 5 %, population will disappear within 50 years

International Tiger and Leopard Day On September 23, 2000 a few dozen school children and parents dressed up as tigers and endangered wildlife to parade in the streets in Vladivostok. Their aim was to educate people about the dangers facing tigers and other wild animals in the Russian Far East. What they did not know is that their efforts would strike such a chord with the people of Vladivostok and others around the world. Every year people around the world join in their own celebration of tigers and the global race to save them. Tiger Day was started by The Phoenix Fund, a Russian non-governmental organization sponsored by Save The Tiger Fund and other international donors. Since then it has been a rallying point for other tiger conservation efforts around the world. In 2003, 21st Century Tiger and AMUR encouraged European and Russian zoos to adopt and promote the concept as an awareness creation and fundraising tool for tiger conservation. In 2005 the Campaign Against Tiger Trafficking was launched on international tiger day, while ceremonies around the world drew diverse public support, including a group of local Shamans on the Indonesian Island of Sumatra. In the Russian Far East, Tiger Day is as popular as ever, just last year, during the month of September, tiger day celebrations occurred in 6 different cities in the province of Primorye.

The Sankhala Heritage and Wildlife Conservation The Sankhala family has a history of wildlife conservation from the 1970's. The late Kailash Sankhala was a distinguished officer in the Indian Forest Service and Founder of Project Tiger (1973). Known as the "Tiger Man of India" he authored many books on the tiger, which serve as a great source of reference to other conservationists. His son, the late Pradeep Sankhala - renowned wildlife tour operator, successfully developed our Jungle Lodges. Pradeep was a well respected conservationist and was the chairman of Tiger Trust India.

TEMPLE of the TIGER The Theravada Buddhist temple is located in the Saiyok district of Thailand's Kanchanaburi province, not far from the border with Myanmar, some 38 km north-west of Kanchanaburi along the 323 highway. It was founded in 1994 as a forest temple and sanctuary for numerous wild animals. In 1995 it received the Golden Jubilee Buddha Image, made of 80 kilograms of gold. According to the abbot and others associated with the temple, in 1999, the temple received the first tiger cub, it had been found by villagers and died soon after. The story goes that several tiger cubs were later given to the temple over time, typically when the mothers had been killed by poachers, others who wanted to get rid of their tiger "pets" or those were under pressure to do so as laws and policies surrounding the keeping of protected species became more strict. As of 2007, over 21 cubs have been born at the temple and the total number of tigers is about 12 adult tigers and 4 cubs. As of late December 2009, the total number of tigers living at the temple has risen to almost 50. The subspecies of these tigers is unknown as none of them have been DNA tested, but it is thought that they are Indochinese Tigers, except Mek (a Bengal Tiger). There is also a possibility that there may be some of the newly discovered Malayan Tigers and it is likely that many are cross breeds or hybrids. They spend most of the time in cages, being fed with cooked chicken, beef and dry cat food. The meat is boiled to avoid giving the tigers a taste for blood [1] and also to kill the bird flu that may be present in raw fowl. According to the temple website the dry cat food replaces nutrients, such as taurine, that are lost when the meat is cooked.[2] The tigers are washed and handled by Thai monks, international volunteers and local staff. Once a day they are walked on leashes to a nearby quarry. Originally they would roam around freely in this area but now, with the increase in visitors and the amount of tigers who sit in the canyon, they are chained for safety reasons.

TEMPLE of the TIGER

Tiger – the present and the future The TRCs set the stage for the TRCs’ progress in 2010 the Year of the Tiger, and beyond. Government of Thailand hosts world’s first inter-ministerial meeting on wild tiger conservation The First Asian Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation was held at the resort of Hua Hin, Thailand from January 27-30, hosted by the Royal Government of Thailand. It marks the first time that ministers from tiger range countries came together to find ways to work together on tiger conservation. Recommendations from international wildlife conservation experts, practitioners, and government delegations from tiger range countries (TRCs), were made in the Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop in October.

The Recommendations on the Global Tiger Initiative call on the TRCs: to cooperate; to support the “Tx2” goals. The “Tx2” goals are: - to stop poaching; - to keep remaining habitats safe; - to double wild tiger populations over the next decade through local, national, trans-boundary and international actions. On the first day of the Kathmandu Tiger Workshop high school students from 30 of Nepal’s schools rallied marched through the center of town. They carried banners and signs of support for the tiger conservation and habitat protection. The session featured traditional Nepali dance and music, a video message from President of the World Bank Robert Zoellick, and speeches from other key players. The tiger range country delegations then presented on the national plans for conservation in their respective countries. A film crew shooting a documentary on illegal wildlife trafficking for National Geographic arrived and set up shop and began interviewing some of the major figures attending the workshop .

The governments of 13 “tiger” countries including Russia, supported the idea of the World bank to join together, to hold the summit this year, the year of the Tiger. The Heads of the governments will be invited to issue the join statement to keep and restore this endangered species. Russia and the World Wild Fund have initiated to hold the summit in September 2010 in Vladivostok The objective of 13 “tiger” countries : to provide double increase in global population of tigers in the wild nature to the following - 2022 – year of the Tiger .

The International Tiger Forum The heads of governments of the 13 Tiger Range Countries (TRC) in November 2010 in St. Petersburg adopted a declaration to save the wild cats from extinction. The prime ministers declared that they will "strive to double the number of wild tigers by 2022." The worldwide tiger population has declined from 100,000 to just over 3,000 over the past century. The International Tiger Conservation Forum discussed a plan to double the animal's population in 12 years, which will require up to $350 million from the international community. The premiers also agreed to set up a trust fund to collect money from various donors, as well as to work out other flexible mechanisms to sponsor efforts to save the tiger. They also agreed to continue regular top level meetings. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said, "Displaying care about wildlife, we eventually show care about man". The Global Environment Facility (GEF) may contribute $12 million to a tiger conservation program.