News,
Events, and Information:
Jackie
Chan, screen star, speaks out for the tiger, who cannot speak
for itself. "When the buying stops, the killing can too!"
He is the National Spokesman for ACAP (Asian Conservation
Awareness Program).
The
Asian Conservation Awareness Program (ACAP) Asian Conservation
Awareness Program (ACAP) raises awareness in key Asian wildlife
consuming countries of the crisis facing wildlife and the
role of the consumer in the wildlife trade. With top celebrities,
local groups and corporations, governments and local media,
we seek to reduce the demand for endangered wildlife products
and create a new generation of wildlife advocates.
NEWS:
Big cats
are being killed for a thriving international trade in
folk remedies,
The Associated
Press State & Local Wire, January 3, 2002
(Click on
the 5Tigers Information Site for more on this story.) This
happened HERE in the USA!
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(photo
courtesy of Como Zoo)
Panthera
Tigris Altaica
(Siberian
(Amur) Tiger)
|
This
is a picture of a Siberian or Amur Tiger at the Como Zoo in
St. Paul, Mn. Siberians tend to live in colder climates (like
Russia). They are now extinct in Korea and almost extinct
in China.
Threats
to Survival: The
largest threats to tigers are loss of habitat and prey, poaching
and poisoning. While protected by law poaching still occurs.
Most tiger populations are small and isolated (habitat fragmentation),
and it is likely that many of these populations are losing
genetic diversity.
(photo
courtesy of Mn Zoo)
This
tiger is at the Minnesota Zoo in Apple Valley, MN. He
is also a Siberian (Amur) Tiger.
Breeding
and Maturation: Gestation period is 100-108 days. Litter
size may be one to six. Offspring usually remain with the
mother for about two years, after which litter mates may still
stay with each other for a while before setting out on their
own. Maturation may be 4-5 years for the male, 3-4 years for
the female. In captivity, tigers may become mature at about
2 years. Females in the wild usually produce litters only
about every 3 or 4 years.
This
is a Siberian Tiger (also known as the Amur Tiger). It is
"THE" biggest cat in the world. It's scientific
name is: Panthera tigris altaica. These tigers have a more
yellowish coat (in winter) with white undersides. The white
extends to the back legs and tail. This helps them to blend
with their surroundings. Male Siberians can be 9-12 feet long
(from nose to tip of tail), and can weigh 400-650 pounds.
They may (under good conditions) live to be 25 yrs old. These
tigers (males) do not reach their mating age until they are
between 3 and 5 years old(females between 3 and 4 yrs). Their
main diet consists of: deer, boar, elk, lynx, bear, and also
smaller prey such as: fish, rabbits and hares.
The Siberian tiger lives in Siberia, and
also in northern China and Korea.
According to the wildlife fact file, it
is estimated that there are no more than 200 of this particular
tiger left in the wild. There are a few that are in tiger
rescue facilities.
(photo
courtesy of
This
is Genesis. He is also a Siberian Tiger. He is in a "Tiger
Rescue Facility". He doesn't look as well kept and shined
up for the public as the tiger above does.
(photo
courtesy of
These
are Bengal Tigers. Bengals are the only tiger subspecies that
has been bred to show the white gene. The "White"
Bengal tiger is not endangered, but the "Orange"
bengal is.
The
orange Bengal Tiger (scientific name... Panthera Tigris Tigris)
lives in the Indian subcontinent. This is comprised of: Bangladesh,
Bhutan, China (Tibet), India, Nepal and western Myanmar. There
were approximately 3,176 to 4.556 of this subspecies living
in the "world" in 1999, according to the World Conservation
Union (IUCN). Less than 30-35 of these are living in China.
People
are breeding the white Bengal for $$$$ value, and for it's
uniqueness. Zoos and circuses, and indiscriminate owners,
allow this tiger to breed, and then when they are no longer
a drawing card or become to big or are too expensive to feed,
or for whatever other reason, they end up abused, mistreated,
discarded or worse, in "Tiger Rescue Facilities"
that are already overcrowded. One big problem with breeding
the white tiger is that in order to sustain the "white"
gene, it must be done by inbreeding. This means father to
daughter, mother to son, son to daughter. This is not the
normal way of tigers. Inbreeding rarely occurs. There are
many abnormalities and problems with inbreeding. Health problems,
deformities, etc
.
Here
is a photo of a once beautiful and noble tiger, now in a cage
in a rescue facility called "Tiger Creek".
His
name is Gombe. 
(photo
courtesy of Tiger Creek)
Compare
Gombe with his cousin to the left, or even the one above.
Not a pretty site, is it? He is being taken care of the best
that is possible under the circumstance.
