Wild tigers are on the rise for the first time in 100 years

After more than a century of steady decline, the wild tiger population is finally growing for the first time.

He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him

Tigers on the rise. After more than a century of steady decline, the wild tiger population is finally growing for the first time.

Il WWF and Tiger Global Forum (GTF) they released their latest census that matters today 3.890 tigers, of which more than half are found in India. In 2010, the population of tigers was 3.200, from 100 in 1900. Data which, as explained by the WWF, have been elaborated on the basis of the figures provided by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and from censuses made by individual countries.

The increase in numbers can be attributed to several factors, including an increase in tiger populations in India, Russia, Nepal and Bhutan, better health analyzes than ever before, and greater protection.

"This news gives us great hope - declares Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWF International - and shows us that we can save species and their habitats when governments, local communities and those who work in the field of conservation work together".

THEIndia, with more than 2.200 tigers, is the country with the largest presence of these cats in the world. Then follow Russia with 433 specimens and Indonesia with 371. The WWF has been involved for 50 years for the conservation of the tiger: currently it is present with conservation projects in 13 countries where the tiger is present.

To achieve these results, a large contribution was made by Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, which has donated over $ 6 million.

“With the WWF - said Di Caprio - my Foundation has supported great efforts to double the number of tigers in the wild. In Nepal in particular, our commitment has produced great results: I am proud of the results achieved also thanks to our effort, but there is still a lot to do to save this extraordinary animal from extinction ".

Wild tigers are on the rise for the first time in 100 years

This analysis, in essence, underlines that countries like India have been able to show how development can benefit people by minimizing the impact on tigers: around the reserves, for example, new roads have been built. and designed tunnels and elevated walkways to help tigers move around the area, having very little contact with humans. In addition, also in India, but also in Nepal, great strides have been made in reducing the number of tigers sold on the black market.

Less comforting figures, however, come from Bangladesh, where the number of tigers has fallen somewhat from 440 to 106. According to Ginette Hemley, senior vice president for conservation at WWF, it is likely that this is not a real decline, but simply of the the fact that the new government has conducted more precise investigations than the previous one. At the bottom of the ranking, then, the new report estimates that in China only seven wild tigers survive, five in Vietnam, none in Cambodia. In contrast, Indonesia and Malaysia are important for the long-term survival of the species, says Hemley, but they are countries besieged by poaching and the development of the territory, which degrades the habitat of the tigers.

In short, the message that emerges from the WWF study is however that of "cautious hope", concludes Hemley. "The fact that the numbers are increasing is significant, but there is still a long way to go".

A further fundamental step, experts say, would be one concrete cooperation between the various countries, which would represent a means of initiating cooperation in other areas as well. “By saving nature, we often save ourselves,” says Luke Dollar, who coordinates the Big Cats Initiative for the National Geographic Society.

And this is precisely the motto towards which we want to strive, in all areas.

Germana Carillo

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