Shanghai Zoo solicits names for four South China tiger cubs

[beijingwalker]

Shanghai Zoo solicits names for four South China tiger cubs

 

[beijingwalker]

The South China Tiger

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, the population of the tiger in the wild was estimated at 4,000 individuals. As China began a comprehensive agricultural program, the cat was declared a pest and targeted for eradication. Extensive deforestation, uncontrolled hunting, diminishing prey, and population pressure dramatically reduced the tiger population to less than 200 by 1982.

Since the 1970s, no wild tiger has been seen in the wilderness of China, but in 1990, signs of the tiger's presence were found in 11 reserves, although none was physically seen. Between 2000 and 2001, aerial and ground surveillance across five provinces of South Central China provided no evidence of the presence of the South China tiger. In 2007, the Chinese government confirmed that the South China tiger was officially extinct in the wild and began a process to reintroduce the animal.

Despite the declaration, several people across Southern China continued to report sightings and attacks on domestic animals by the South China tiger, although no report was officially confirmed.

 

[beijingwalker]

Around 100 South China tigers live in different zoos and breeding centers in China.

South China tigers. /VCG Photo