Saving tigers
Why Tigers Are in Trouble
Scientists think there were about 100,000 tigers living in Asia in 1900. By 2006, only about 5,000 or fewer survive. Without our help, tigers will become extinct in the wild. And that would be a terrible thing!
Why are tigers in trouble?
People kill tigers. Some people kill tigers so they can sell their fur, bones, or other parts. This is illegal everywhere tigers live, but people still do it because they can make lots of money. Other times, people kill tigers because tigers attack their livestock, such as cows and buffaloes, and this makes people want to get rid of tigers.
People are destroying tiger habitat and killing tigers’ prey. Tigers need large areas of forest to live and find enough prey, such as deer and pigs, to feed themselves and their young. When people cut down forest, tigers lose places to live. When people hunt deer and pigs for their own use, tigers have nothing to eat. Tigers then disappear.
Not enough people know and care about the tiger’s troubles. If more people learn about tigers and what they need to survive, and want to keep tigers in the wild, tigers can be saved.
Why save tigers?
There are many reasons to save tigers.
- Tigers are beautiful animals. If they go extinct we will lose a wonderful creature that can never be replaced.
- Many people admire tigers as symbols of wild nature. They are important in many cultures and have inspired stories, poetry, and art.
- Saving wild tigers and their habitats helps to save other animals that live in the same habitats, such as Asian elephants.
- The survival of tigers in the wild also means that the environment is still healthy—for people and for tigers and other wildlife.