After 4-Year Absence, Tigers Spotted in Thailand Again Just in Time for International Tiger Day

According to the release, tiger densities in western Thailand are so low that conservationists cannot make a reliable estimate on how many of the animals live in the area, highlighting the fragility of the population and the significance of the latest tiger sightings.

"These sightings are extremely encouraging for the future of tigers in our country and beyond," said Dr. Saksit Simcharoe, Chief of the Wildlife Research Division for DNP. "Our rangers and partners at Panthera and ZSL are keenly monitoring the region to determine if these individuals establish territories, ultimately helping to achieve Thailand’s goal of increasing tiger populations by 50% by 2022."

"These tigers are in a precarious situation," Dr. Simcharoe added. "Sustained and stronger protection of this area from poaching activity of any kind is the key to ensuring these individuals live on, helping Thailand’s tigers to rebound.”

Tigers once ranging across much of Asia have been extirpated from southern China, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Vietnam, and much of Myanmar.

As it stands, poaching for the illegal wildlife trade is the gravest threat to the survival of the tiger, whose numbers in the wild have dwindled from 100,000 a century ago to 3,900 today.

Source: Read Full Article