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WORLDWIDE
BIODIVERSITY/FOREST CAMPAIGN NEWS
IUCN
Expects Tiger to be Virtually Extinct in Wild by 1999
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Forest
Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
April
14, 1995
OVERVIEW
& SOURCE
In the
following piece, the IUCN goes through each country
possessing
Tigers and assess conservation chances there.
They
conclude
that the final battle to save the tiger must be launched
now,
and that further delay can only lead quickly to the
extinction
of the tiger. This item was posted in
econet's
env.wildlife
conference.
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/**
env.wildlife: 699.0 **/
**
Topic: Tiger: IUCN Press Conference 3/95 **
**
Written 2:51 PM Apr
5, 1995 by usfwsia in cdp:env.wildlife
**
Press
conference by Peter Jackson,
Chairman,
IUCN Cat Specialist Group
New
Delhi, India, 30 March 1995
The
tiger will be virtually extinct in the wild by 1999 unless
India
and the other range states declare open war on poachers and
illegal
traders and throw all the resources required into the
battle.
Some scattered individuals will remain and produce some
young
for a decade or two in the 21st century, but, in fact, we
shall
have seen the end of the tiger.
A
review of the situation in India and south-east Asia shows that
poaching
is accelerating, with well-organized illegal trade
networks
operating, sometimes with the connivance of officials.
Actual
seizures indicate that hundreds of tigers are being poached
every
year in India alone, primarily for traditional Chinese
medicine.
If the
governments of tiger range states do not have the political
will to
save the tiger, then the future is bleak for wild nature
and
human welfare. Tiger conservation does not involve just a
single
species. It means saving large tracts of Asia's tropical
forests
and their wildlife. Forests and the natural world in
generaltion
of all life on earth, including that of humans, who
rely on
complex ecological systems for food, water, clean air, and
many
products used in their lives. Economic development will
ultimately
fail unless recognition is given to the vital
importance
of maintaining natural systems, of which the tiger
is a
part and a symbol.
India
India
has become a killing ground for tigers. Undercover
investigations
by members and associates of the Cat Specialist
Group
and TRAFFIC International have been involved in the seizure
of the
bones, skins and claws, which could account for around 100
tigers
poached in the past two years. The seizures also included
206
leopard skins, 18 snow leopard skins, 3 clouded leopard skins,
565
leopard cat skins and 773 skins of desert, jungle, marbled and
fishing
cats, not to mention other species. Seizures of thousands
of
skins and other parts of a whole range of Illegal trade
networks
which convey tiger bones and other parts to consumer
countries,
primarily China, South Korea and Taiwan, have been
identified.
Skins are smuggled to other countries. Fiftytwo
persons
were arrested and charged in these cases. The involvement
of
Kashmiri militants and traders, as well as Tibetans, has been
established.
The
number of tigers known to have been killed is only the tip of
the
iceberg. Application of the "iceberg formula" (i.e. what is
visible
is only a fifth of the whole) to the above figures
suggests
that over 500 tigers may have been poached in the past
two
years. The loss of female reproductive potential and the
disruption
of the social system of tigers, which leads to low cub
survival,
means that the impact is far greater than the actual
number
of tigers lost.
The
situation is almost certainly worse in other tiger range
countries
in South-East Asia and the Russian Far East, which
together
hold fewer than 2,000 of the tens of thousands of tigers
which
existed a century ago. There is no evidence that effective
protection
is being provided in these countries. Tiger parts are
openly
displayed, even in capital cities.
The
Sino-Indian Protocol on Conservation of the Tiger
The
Sino-Indian Protocol on Conservation of the Tiger is a welcome
step
towards international cooperation, but Indian members of the
Cat
Specialist Group who met at Kanha on 20-21 March (see list at
end)
consider that it has some objectional features.
Article
IV states:
"Encourage,
on an experimental basis, captive breeding activities
with a
view to release of the species into the wild."
This
article has no relevance to the problem of tiger conservation
in
India and diverts attention, resources and effort from the
urgent
task of protecting existing tiger populations, which are
gravely
threatened by poaching for skins, bones and other parts
for
Chinese medicine. India has between 3,000 and 4,000 tigers and
protecting
them must be given the highest priority. They breed
well
and there is clearly no need whatsoever for releasing
captive-bred
tigers.
Captive
breeding programmes can be valuable for biological
research,
but they are expensive. Release in the wild would be
far
more expensive, even for a single tiger, let alone the number
which
would be required to re-establish a healthy population. But
there
are no records of successful release of captive-bred tigers
in the
wild. Young tigers need to learn how to live and hunt in
the
wild from their mother over a period of up to two years before
they
become independent.
Areas
exist in India where tigers once lived but have recently
been
extirpated, but there is no chance of captive- bred tigers
surviving
there if the reasons for the absence of wild tigers are
not
addressed, primarily poaching. Given that the authorities have
not
been able to stop the massive poaching wave now going on, it
is
obvious that captive-bred tigers, reared at great expensive,
would
be killed too.
The
idea that existing tiger populations could be "topped up" with
captive-bred
animals is not practical. Tigers have a tight-knit
social
organization in which males defend territories containing
several
females, who also do not tolerate intruders. Introduced
tigers,
even given some training in captivity, would face the
hostility
of tigers in release areas. Animals without territories,
such as
an introduced tiger, are liable to be killed, or be forced
to move
to fringe areas to live on livestock. They may clash with
local
people, with possibly fatal consequences. This would
seriously
antagonize these communities and be counter-productive
to the
whole concept of tiger and wildlife conservation.
In the
light of the above, the Indian members of the Cat
Specialist
Group recommend that the Government of India should
seek
China's agreement to the deletion of Article IV of the Sino-
Indian
protocol. As a sovereign country, China can pursue any
domestic
policy it chooses and would not be affected by the
deletion.
The Cat
Group also points out that the phrase in the Preamble
referring
to "sustainable development of the species" is nonsense.
Human
intervention in natural evolution of a wild species, means
that it
ceases to be a wild species. If the phrase is meant to
refer
to "sustainable use", it is inappropriate and objectionable
and
should not be included in an agreement on conservation of the
tiger.
Madhya
Pradesh
With
900 tigers reported by the 1993 census, Madhya Pradesh holds
about
one-sixth of the surviving world population, and is about to
declare
itself a "Tiger State". Accompanied by Valmik Thapar,
Vice-Chairman
(Asia) of the Cat Specialist Group, and Peter
Lawton,
Chief Executive of Global Tiger Patrol, I have just spent
two
weeks visiting the Pench, Kanha, Bandhavgarh
and Panna tiger
reserves.
They are places of exceptional natural beauty and value
to
India, and they contain a wide spectrum of the country's rich
wildlife.
We found evidence of tigers in Kanha,
Bandhavgarh and Panna
(where
we saw one tiger). We did not find tracks in Pench, but the
reserve
staff reported recent sightings. Dr Ullas Karanth, who has
carried
out many years of study of tigers and prey in Nagarhole
National
Park, has chosen Pench for a scientific survey of tiger
presence
using strategically-located camera traps, and will later
carry
out a similar survey in Kanha.
Over 50
poaching incidents have occurred in Madhya Pradesh in the
past
six months, one of them on the eve of our arrival in
Bandhavgarh,
in which an attempt was made to implicate a well-
known
conservationist. The police have recovered skins and bones
of 16
tigers. More than 30 people have been
arrested and
prosecuted,
and the police believe that hundreds are involved in
organized
illegal trade.
Apart
from direct poaching, the tiger is threatened by habitat
degradation
caused by livestock grazing in the four reserves. In
Panna,
for example, there are 16 villages within the reserve and
40
outside which send in livestock. Some areas are bare of
vegetation,
except for a few trees and large patches of lantana,
an
exotic weed. If Panna is to survive as a haven for tigers and
other
wildlife, immediate action is required to move villages,
control
livestock grazing and rehabilitate the land. Diamond
mining
and stone quarrying on the reserve boundaries are also
contributing
to degradation and polluting rivers.
In
general, we were impressed by the dedication of Project Tiger
staff,
but concerned that, except for Kanha, vital resources, such
as
vehicles, binoculars and personnel have not been provided by
the
central and state governments to enable them to carry out
their
mission. We have decided to provide emergency aid.
At the
same time, we urge the authorities to act at once to carry
out
their commitment to saving the tiger and its habitat. The
large
number of Indians, as well as foreigners, who visit the
reserves
shows what a high value people place on wild nature.
Members
of the Cat Specialist Group are concerned about the
situation
in many places in India. Lack of resources is
handicapping
protection and management and there are fears that
at
least 11 of the Project Tiger reserves may soon deteriorate
below
the point of no return. They include Buxa, Dudhwa,
Indravati,
Manas, Nagarjunasagar, Palamau, Panna, Pench,
Ranthambhore,
Sariska and Valmiki. The situation is well known
to the
authorities, and in no case is the situation irreversible
if
immediate action is taken.
It is
unfortunate that at this very moment of crisis, the Finance
Ministry
has placed a moratorium on purchase by Project Tiger of
vehicles,
which are essential if the war against poachers is to be
won.
International organizations, government and non-government,
are
ready to provide funds if invited to do
so.
Vietnam
and Malaysia
Earlier
this month I visited Vietnam, where we held a workshop on
tiger
conservation attended also by representatives of Cambodia
and
Laos. Compared with India, little is known of their tiger
populations,
except that they have been drastically reduced. The
three
countries agreed to cooperate because tigers are mainly
found
in the mountains which span their frontiers.
All
three countries lack resources and personnel to deal with the
grave
situation. Action projects were drafted for each country,
and a
representative of WWF International pledged the necessary
funds.
Tiger
parts are openly displayed in these countries. In Hanoi, I
found
over 40 tiger canine teeth made into pendants in just four
curio
shops within a radius of 100 metres.
In
Malaysia, which has estimated its tiger population at 600-650
without
actual surveys, around 250 complaints of livestock
predation
were received by the Wildlife Department in 1994.
Although
Malaysia is a relatively wealthy country, wildlife
management
and protection staff have not received adequate
support.
Officials said they would welcome cooperation with their
Indian
counterparts.
Global
Tiger Forum
Eleven
tiger range countries agreed in Delhi in March 1994 to
establish
a Global Tiger Forum to coordinate their tiger
conservation
programmes. To become effective five ratifications
are
required. At the present time only two have been received.
India
itself only ratified the treaty one month ago. The lack of
urgency
and political will displayed could be fatal for the tiger.
CONCLUSION
THE
FINAL BATTLE TO SAVE THE TIGER MUST BE LAUNCHED NOW. FURTHER
DELAY
CAN ONLY LEAD QUICKLY TO THE EXTINCTION OF THE TIGER.
-------------------------------------------
The Cat
Specialist Group is a volunteer panel of 178 biologists,
wildlife
managers and conservationists from 50 countries who are
experts
on the 36 species of wild cats. It is one of over 100
specialist
groups which form part of the Species Survival
Commission
of IUCN - The World Conservation Union, the largest
scientific
conservation organization in the world. IUCN's
membership
includes 68 State members, 92 government agencies, 55
international
non-governmental organizations, 563 national non-
governmental
organizations and 33 affiliates in 129 countries. The
headquarters
is in Gland, near Geneva, Switzerland, and there is a
network
of regional offices around the world.
Cat
Specialist Group members present at the Kanha meeting
20-21
March 1995:
Mr
Peter Jackson,
Chairman, IUCN Cat Specialist Group.
Mr
Valmik Thapar,
Vice-Chairman (Asia), IUCN Cat Specialist
Group, and a non-
official member of the Project Tiger Steering
Committee.
Dr
Ullas Karanth,
Associate Research Scientist, World
Conservation Society/New
York Zoological Society, and a member of the
official Tiger
Crisis Cell.
Mr
Sanjoy Deb Roy,
Retired Additional Inspector General of
Forests (Wildlife) and
a non-official member of the Project Tiger
Steering Committee.
Mr
Pranabes Sanyal,
Conservator of Forests, West Bengal.
Mr
Madhav Gogate,
Conservator of Forests (Research), Maharashtra.
Dr
Raghunandan Chundawat, Senior Wildlife Biologist, Wildlife
Institute of India.
Mrs
Anne Wright,
Independent conservationist.
Ms
Belinda Wright
Executive Director, Wildlife Protection
Society of India.
Ms Shomita
Mukherjee,
Research Scientist, Wildlife Institute of
India.
Mr
Peter Lawton,
Chief Executive, Global Tiger Patrol
(UK).
For
more information contact:
peterjackson@gn.apc.org
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