New initiative aims to double tiger population
1st February 2010
Multi-national coalition ‘Global Tiger Initiative’ vowed to double tiger numbers by 2022
Despite the Chinese zodiac hailing 2010 as the ‘Year of the Tiger’, the outlook for the big cat is bleak.
A multi-national coalition called the Global Tiger Initiative (GTI) vowed recently to double the number of tigers by 2022, crack down on poaching and prohibit development that could harm tiger habitat.
At the turn of the 20th century, 100,000 wild tigers roamed the diverse landscapes of Asia. Today, tigers are on the verge of extinction, with only about 3,500 left in the wild. Tiger numbers have plummeted with habitat loss and a booming trade in tiger parts.
“There will be no room left for tigers and other wildlife in Asia without a more responsible and sustainable program for economic growth and infrastructure development. The tiger may be only one species, but the tiger’s plight highlights the biodiversity crisis in Asia”, said Robert Zoellick, World Bank and GTI member.
GTI member China successfully removed language in the draft agreement that would have seen a permanent ban on domestic tiger trade. Banned since 1993, China has lobbied to reopen the controversial trade in the past.
Not everyone thinks the new commitment will help secure the future of wild tigers.
“I think China’s involvement is a disgraceful double-standard, unless they admit they only want to double the number of tigers as ingredients for ‘tiger-penis soup’. Anything else is a charade”, says Exodus guide and wildlife photographer Paul Goldstein.
“It would be easy, though for tigers to follow the plight of the Pandas that live in zoos and ghastly 'holding facilities' in China but not properly in the wild any more. It is at a tipping point right now”, Paul continues.
And while ecotourism is not a panacea for tiger conservation, it was generally agreed that ecotourism might be one of the more effective tools used to save tiger populations.
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