|
South China Tiger
Panthera tigris amoyensis
• It is estimated that at most only 20-30 South
China tigers still exist in the wild. Currently 47
South China tigers live in 18 zoos, all in China.The
South China tiger is the most critically endangered
of all tiger subspecies.
• The South China tiger is found in central and
eastern China.
• The South China tiger is one of the smallest tiger
subspecies. Male tigers measure about 2.5 meters (8
feet) from head to tail and weigh approximately 150
kilograms (330 pounds). Female tigers are smaller,
measuring about 2.3 meters (7 1/2 feet) long. They
weigh approximately 110 kilograms (240 pounds). The
short, broad stripes of the South China tiger are
spaced far apart compared to those of Bengal and
Siberian tigers.
• Because there are so few wild South China tigers,
and they have rarely been seen, very little is know
about them at this time.
Zoo Tigers
According to the 1995 South China Tiger Studbook the
captive population of 48 South China tigers is
confined to 19 Chinese zoos. They are descended from
only six wild-caught tigers (about 120 tigers
descended from 30 wild-caught tigers would be closer
to the ideal). The last time that a wild tiger was
brought into captivity was 20 years ago. The
situation for the future does not look good.
Conservation Action
To counter these disturbing trends, China has made
some valiant efforts. It joined CITES in 1981 and
passed the Wild Animal Protection Law of the
People's Republic of China in 1988. This year the
Chinese Association of Zoological Gardens, under the
Ministry of Construction, invited the IUCN's Tiger
GASP team to evaluate their tiger husbandry and
medical management procedures, to verify origin and
parentage of each tiger, and to perform a population
management analysis at a masterplan workshop. Two
significant outcomes were a South China Tiger
Studbook and a South China Tiger Masterplan.
Additional plans are to meet with the Ministry of
Forestry and to further define the status and
threats to wild populations using a computer-based
landscape analysis (GIS) and to draft an Action Plan
on what might be done to secure wild tigers for the
future.
More about Wild tiger distribution in China
More information about South China tigers |
