Rare Tiger Cub found in China Dies of Malnutrition

Discovery of rare Siberian Tiger raises survival hopes

A Rare Siberian Tiger discovered near the Russian border seemed an auspicious beginning to China's Year of the Tiger, but within days, the emaciated cub had died of malnutrition. The cub, believed to be about 1 year old, was already in poor shape just after it was found on Feb. 26 trapped in a fence, a security official with the forestry bureau in the northern province of Heilongjiang said Tuesday.

"It lay on the ground and looked so weak. We've had heavy snow these days, and it must have been starving," said the official, who would only give his family name, Zhang. Siberian Tigers are one of the world's rarest species, with just 300 believed remaining in the wild. In China, killing one of the big cats is punishable by death.

According to the Heilongjiang News, a forestry official named Han Deyou heard his dog barking and found the cub trapped between the metal bars of a fence in his backyard. The discovery came just days into the Chinese Lunar New Year — the Year of the Tiger, according to the Chinese zodiac.

The rescue effort took about 20 hours, and the female cub was fed two chickens and some beef while waiting. She had no apparent injuries. But, in a report Tuesday, the newspaper said the cub died two days later. "It was malnourished, and it had heart failure," Sun Haiyi, an official with the Heilongjiang Wild Animal Research Center, told the newspaper.

A 1-year-old tiger should weigh about 110 pounds (50 kilograms), but the cub weighed less than 66 pounds (30 kilograms), Sun said. Telephones at the research center rang unanswered Tuesday evening. The death comes as new efforts are under way to bolster the world's tiger population.

The 13 remaining countries with tiger populations are planning a first-ever Tiger summit in September in Russia with the help of the Global Tiger Initiative, a coalition formed in 2008 by the World Bank, the Smithsonian Institute and nearly 40 conservation groups. It aims to double tiger numbers by 2020.

The World Wildlife Fund has warned that tigers become extinct in China in the next 30 years.

Hungry Tiger kills zoo keeper

Tiger in unlocked cage kills Shanghai zoo keeper

BEIJING, An animal keeper was bitten to death by a hungry Tiger at Shanghai Zoo this morning. The 53-year-old victim surnamed Li was about to clean the tiger cage and feed the animal at about 8:15 a.m. when the bengal tiger inside suddenly jumped out and bit him in the neck, witnesses said.

The Tiger dragged Li around inside the cage as more than 10 shocked tourists watching. Though waiving his arm for help for several times, the victim was soon unable to move and finally laid on the ground, with all the clothes ragged by the tiger.

Li was pronounced dead at the time ambulances arrived at about 8:30 a.m..

"Zoo staff said that the Tiger didn't have anything to eat the whole day yesterday, it must have been starving," said one of the witnesses. A team of police officers, zoo managers and animal experts have started to probe into cause of the deadly mishap. It is the second case that man was bitten to death in the city. In 1999, a 41-year-old tour bus driver died after he got off the broken-down bus in the tigers' zone and was attacked by a wandering Tiger nearby.

The State Forestry Administration said last month that there were nearly 6,000 captive tigers in China, most of them on "tiger farms" where the animals are bred for body parts used in traditional medicine.

Two Tiger Cubs found dead in Ranthambore Park, Rajasthan

Poisoned Goats used to kill Ranthambore Tigers

Two Tiger Cubs have been found dead in mysterious circumstances at the Ranthambhore National park in the north-west Indian state of Rajasthan.

Wildlife officials say it appears the cubs had been poisoned. An inquiry has been ordered. The bodies of the cubs have been sent for post mortems. Poaching and loss of habitat in India have decimated Tiger numbers which are estimated to have fallen from 40,000 to about 1,400 in the past 100 years. A major awareness campaign has been launched to halt the steep decline in Tiger numbers in India.

'Revenge' Ranthambore covers several hundred square kilometres of dry deciduous forests sprawling over undulating Terrain. According to a 2009 census, there were about 40 tigers in and around the park, which is in Sawai madhopur district of Rajasthan. Nearly 100 villages surround the park, and the more the Tiger population grows the more they are likely to come into conflict with humans, observers say.

Ranthambhore is a major tourist attraction, drawing about 200,000 people from India and abroad every year. Whatever be the reason, the killings display a total lack of a foolproof system to Protect Tigers in a small area of this National park even after the Sariska disaster. While wild life department has shifted three Tigers to Sariska and is pushing for moving more tigers to other core areas, the major question these killings have again raised is that government or anyone else just can not assure safety to tigers at their home, whether in a National Park or their new homes.

he cause of the deaths is yet to be ascertained, but prima facie, it seemed like a case of poisoning.

"This situation looks like that the Tigers have hunted the two goats. One goat was found hanging on the tree, looking at the other goat it looks like someone might have poisoned the goat or it could be pesticides consumed by the goat, which became the reason for the death of tiger, as they consumed them. Evidence of vomiting was found and clears certain queries. But forest Officials are examining the tigers, and the clear picture would emerge after it,".

Plight of TIGERS along with Beauty of TIGERS

Among all the Big Cats, only the Tiger and Jaguar are strong swimmers. Tigers are often found bathing in ponds, lakes, and rivers. Tigers are mostly solitary creatures that walk and hunt alone. Tragically within our liftimes Zoos might be the only places left to see these magnificent animals.

The Tiger is classified as endangered by the IUCN, and of the 6 surviving species the futures of the South China Tiger and the Siberian Tigers seem particularly bleak. Recent extensive surveys resulted in no sightings.

The key to the survival of the Tiger is the maintenance of large tracts of Contiguous Habitat, but protection of this species is complicated by its Man-eater reputation and by the threat posed to livestock.

There are eight Main Species of Tigers in World around, 3 of which are extinct and 1 of which is almost certain to go extinct. These are the surviving Species:

1. The Royal Bengal Tiger (Panthera Tigris )
2. Indochinese Tiger (Panthera Corbetti)
3. The Malayan Tiger (Panthera Jacksoni)
4. The Sumatran Tiger (Panthera Sumatran)
5. The Siberian Tiger (Panthera Altaica)
6. The South-China Tiger (Panthera Amoyensis)
7. The Balinese Tiger (Panthera Balica) — extinct
8. The Javan Tiger (Panthera Sondaica) — extinct
9. The Caspian Tiger or Persian Tiger (Panthera Virgata) — extinct
10. The Trinil tiger (Panthera Trinilensis) — extinct

Bengal variety almost extinct, none has been seen in the wild since the last White Tiger was shot and killed in 1958. White Tigers are the most rare. They get their white color from an unusual and extremely rare genetic combination.

1409 left.. 2 died.. last week -- International Efforts to Protect Tigers

Central Kerala Wildlife Sanctuary Declared India's Tiger Reserve.

Parambikkulam wildlife sanctuary in central Kerala has been declared country's 38th Tiger reserve.

There are about 20 Siberian Tigers in the border area of Heilongjiang and Russia, almost 12 Bengal Tigers in southeastern Tibet and 11-16 Indochinese Tigers in southwest China.

China's State Forestry Administration issued a directive last month to boost the Protection of wild Tigers through natural habitat management, stronger law enforcement against illegal trade in Tiger parts and products, stricter regulation of captive breeding regulations.

According to the State Forestry Administration, a total of 16 Tiger Conservation Areas and 74 conservation management offices are in operation and 6,000 tigers are living in captivity.

In terms of International efforts, the Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop was held October 09 and the First Asian Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation from January 27-30. Bringing together ministers from 15 Countries, the conference was one event in a continuum of efforts planned for 2010 that will culminate with the Heads of Government Tiger Summit in Russia in September.

Initiatives OF INDIAN Government:

1. Corbett National Park to have Tiger Protection Force from January 2010 - The Uttarakhand Government has decided to set up a specialized Tiger Protection Force to prevent poaching in the Corbett Tiger Reserve.

2. Madhya Pradesh sets up Special force to Protect Tigers - With its Tiger population dwindling sharply over the last two years, a worried MP government will deploy a Special Tiger Protection Force in its three Tiger Reserves of Kanha, Bandhavgarh and Pench National Parks.

3. Center forms Panel to assess Panna Reserve Tiger status - The Central Government has formed a committee to assess the tiger population in the Panna Reserve in Madhya Pradesh.

4. Over Rs.330 million spent this fiscal to save tigers - The central government has given states Rs.330.58 million in fiscal 2007-08 for Protection of Tigers.

5. Retired Army Personnel being recruited to save the Bengal Tigers - With their numbers reduced to as few as 1,300 in the wild, the plan will see pensioned soldiers who have returned to their villages being paid to guard wildlife sanctuaries.

White Bengal Tiger - White Siberian Tigers

White Bengal Tigers are now very rarely found in the wild Life. In Last100 years only 15 White Tigers have been seen in the wild habitats of India. They are almost extinct and most of the ones are living in captivity, mainly in Wildlife sanctuaries. This type of tigers is neither an albino or a different species of the tiger.

They are simply white colored and have black stripes that makes them special. It has Pristine white colored fur. The white tiger is born to a Bengal Tiger that has the recessive gene needed for white coloring.

A pure White Tiger has no Black stripes and are completely white in color.

They have blue eyes, a pink nose, and creamy white furr covered with chocolate colored stripes. White Tigers are born to tigers that carry the unusual gene needed for white coloring. Wild White Tigers are rare species.


White tigers in India:
- The Kanha National Park

- Bandhavgarh National Park

- Ranthambore National Park

- Manas Wildlife Sanctuary

- Kaziranga National Park

- Nagarhole


Despite occasional reports of sightings of white tigers in the regions where wild Siberian Tigers live.

Origin of The White Tigers
In 1951, In India, Maharaja M. Singh found a male white Cub who's mother had been killed. He named that Cub "Raj".

When Raj reached adulthood, he was bred to a Normal tiger named "Begum". They produced three litters of cubs, but none of them were white. When Raj was bred to one of his own daughters from the second litter however, four white cubs were born.

One of these white cubs was named "Mohini" who was then bred to her uncle "Sampson" and two of their Kids were sent to the National Zoo, Washington D.C. where they were bred to each other and produced, among other cubs, "Kesari" who was the foundation for the Cincinnati Zoo's line of White Tigers....and this way the lineage continued.

In short, ALL of the White Tigers you see in pictures are descendants of Raj...

Save Our Tigers - ONLY 1,411 Wild Big Cats r Left

How many Big Wild Cats are actually left in India? If an ad, showing famous personalities is to be viewed, India has 1,411 big cats. But the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) say the figure is altered.

The Tiger is the most powerful Living Cat Species on the earth and the largest and heaviest living of the cats in the world. Wild Tigers kill animals much bigger than human beings with a single paw swipe. Even a light swipe from a younger Tiger, of even the smallest subspecies, would most likely serious injury a human being.

Siberians Tigers get even close to 900 pounds. The largest Wild Siberian Tiger weighed 847 Pounds. Siberians, while they are the biggest and most powerful of all cats, have their size grossly overestimated. A more realistic maximum is around 660 pounds for a big male in his prime.

Siberian Wild cats are just stunningly beautiful and graceful animals. You look at a lot of animals, and wonder why nature created them and how they managed to survive for so many generations. With these cats, you don't, you just wonder how anything else can ever look graceful and beautiful next to them. It's the Earth's ultimate animal, in beauty, efficiency and grace.

Like finger-prints are unique to humans, Tiger Stripes are unique to tigers and can be used to identify individuals.