Tiger Species May Face Extinction from Habitat Destruction and Hunting

About a century ago, over 100,000 tigers roamed the Earth and were located between Turkey and Eastern Russia. Scientists now estimate that there are only about 3,000 wild tigers left in the world, and each subspecies seems to be in trouble.

Nine tiger subspecies could be found in parts of the world until three of them went extinct in the 20^th century: the Bali, Javan, and Caspian tigers. Six tiger subspecies remain - Bengal, Siberian, Indochinese, Malayan, Sumatran, and South China - and scientists have found that their populations decreased by 50% in just three tiger generations.

Deforestation over the years has shrunk the living environment for these tigers and has contributed to many of the cats' deaths. Additionally, poachers have played a role in their endangerment. Tigers are hunted and used in traditional Chinese medicine. Their bones are utilized to dispel wind, ease pain, and strengthen sinews and bones in humans. Those who suffer from rheumatic and arthritic disorders, weakness of the back and legs, and leg spasms benefit greatly from this treatment. However, excessive poaching has been listed as a main cause for the tigers' endangerment.

Various wildlife and conservation groups have been working to track the numbers and save the dwindling tiger population. National Geographic's Big Cats Initiative works to save lions, tigers, cheetahs, leopards, jaguars, and other big cats across the world. They have an array of ongoing projects that help achieve their mission, which include influencing legislation to establish conservation efforts, educating the youth as well as tribes about human-animal conflict, and combating hunters and poachers.

Other groups include the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, World Wildlife Foundation, and Save China's Tigers. The IUCN provides summaries and overviews of the status of various endangered species in order to help others initiate measures to prevent extinctions. The World Wildlife Foundation is the world's leading conservation organization and is active in 100 countries. They team up with the IUCN to provide accurate reports worldwide. Lastly, the Save China's Tiger program seeks to restore habitat and protect the tiger ecological chain by using the Chinese tiger as the flagship. A majority of the tiger subspecies is located in Asia, which is an important location for a species restoration.

To read more about the endangered tiger subspecies, visit this National Geographic article.