As most of you know, I have an obsession with tigers, so of course when I found out that they were one of the main groups of species whom are currently endangered, I just about lost it. When I found this out, I decided to look into why exactly these beauties were on the endangered list and how, if at all – I could help in the prevention of these species from going extinct.
What I found to be an interesting fact was that originally, there were actually nine different subspecies of tigers, but three of these species have become extinct in just the last 80 years – which, in the article I found, says that’s an average of one every 20 years. Of these, four are considered endangered by the IUCN while two are considered “critically” endangered. Many predict that tigers could become extinct (in the wild atleast) within the next decade if things don’t get fixed and fast. Tigers have reduced drastically in numbers due to poaching, habitat loss and fragmentation, going from over 100,000 in the 1900’s to less than 4,000 by the 70’s. The total number of remaining tigers (which includes all of the subspecies: Bengal, Indochinese, Malayan, Siberian, South China and Sumatran) is estimated to be as small as 3,000 to 3,600.
Now THIS really freaked me out. I mean, I have a tiger tattoo on my back for god’s sake. How would I explain to my kids what kind of animal it even is if it’ll be extinct by the time they’re born?
The good news, I found out, is that there are actions being taken. There are laws in many of the countries in which tiger’s habitats are located for their protection, which are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and more. On top of that, not only are there tigers in zoos to educate and breed, but there are also organizations put into place for the felines, such as 21st Century Tiger, 5 Tigers, All For Tigers, Animal Welfare Institute and more.
I donate to three different rescues and conservations for tigers currently and when I can, I try to get others too as well. The first step in saving any endangered species is to educate, which is what I try to do and will continue to do because animals don’t have voices, but we can be their voices for them.
Sources:
Tiff’s Green Thumb 