German government pledges 20 million euros to conserve tigers

A tiger conservation programme managed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has received €20 million from the German government through the KfW Development Bank. The aim of the programme is to increase the number of tigers in the wild and improve the livelihoods of communities living in and close to their habitat.

“The tiger is the face of Asia’s biodiversity and an emblem of the world’s natural heritage,” said Julia Marton-Lefèvre, IUCN Director General. “This generous support from Germany provides great hope for this iconic species, which is currently on the brink of extinction. Saving the tiger depends on restoring its rapidly shrinking forest habitat. This will regenerate valuable ecosystem services and improve the lives of some of the most marginalised people on our planet.”

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Indian tiger conservation plan approved

Uninterrupted flow of funds' promised to develop Sahyadri Reserve

November 2013: India's National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has approved the tiger conservation plan for the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve, targeting sustainable development of one of the major forest areas of the state of Western Maharashtra for the next ten years.

NTCA inspector general of forests H S Negi recently gave his written approval to the state's principal secretary (forests), the Union ministry of environment and forests, and chief conservator of forests (Kolhapur circle) and STR field director N Mohan Karnat, who prepared the plan worth 2.8bn rupees (£27.5m) over ten years.

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Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Pledges $3 Million for Tiger Conservation

The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation has awarded $3 million to the World Wildlife Fund to aid the organization's efforts to protect vulnerable populations of wild tigers in Nepal.

The grant will be used to fund tiger conservation projects in the Terai Arc Landscape, an area near the foothills of the Himalayas that is made up of 11 trans-border protected ecosystems between Nepal and India. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) aims to double the number of tigers in Nepal by the year 2022, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

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Worth More Alive IV - Helping to save tigers

2 marathons in a week dressed as a tiger in aid of tiger conservation - At the age of 50

Award-winning wildlife photographer, guide and conservationist, Paul Goldstein, is again putting himself through hell: Running the Brighton marathon and then 'running' the London marathon just a week later - all of which he will be doing in a 9ft tall tiger costume! 

Last year Paul ran 4 marathons in 1 week, but that was too easy, so this year he will climb Kilimanjaro and run 2 marathons.

Paul said "I intend to use last years not inconsiderable sum and this year's for proper projects: new, spring fed,solar-powered water holes in the park, big school renovations including a new assembly hall for the 500-strong school. This will benefit both tiger, prey and local people."

Many of you have already been generous this year and in the past but I am asking you to donatehttp://www.justgiving.com/worthmorealive4 however small, for this cause. Even if you don't care about this striped cat, I am sure you loathe what people are doing to them.

Yes it will be tough on the course, if any of you are thinking of supporting don't be shy about bringing along a few care packages (Wine gums, bananas, jelly snakes etc), they are both superb events. I will be sore by the end of this and hurting but my insignificant pain is nothing to what these animals are going through. I have said this before but I re-iterate: they are more than a signature species endorsed by golfers, rugby clubs, beers and cereals which do little or nothing for them, they are a meal ticket to so many: from guides to wardens, tourists and lodge owners, I hate the thought of losing them. Put simply, they matter and this week-end and the next they are going to start mattering a bit more.

Continued:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/tiger-conservation.html

China puts the 'con' into tiger conservation

New report exposes the double standard which stimulates demand

February 2013. Despite signing up to global initiatives seeking to protect wild tigers and double their number by 2022, Government departments in China have quietly set about stimulating domestic markets for tiger skins and body parts.

5000 tigers in captivity in China

As few as 3,500 tigers survive in the wild, yet more than 5,000 captive-bred tigers are held in Chinese ‘farms' and ‘zoos'.

Investigations by the London-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) have uncovered a legalised domestic trade in the skins of captive-bred tigers, sold as luxury home décor and stimulating the poaching of wild tigers and other Asian big cats as cheaper alternatives.

Tiger wine

In addition, new evidence suggests a ‘secret' Government notification on the use of the bones of captive-bred tigers is being used to justify the manufacture of ‘tonic' wines.

The new EIA report ‘Hidden in Plain Sight: China's Clandestine Tiger Trade' accuses China of defying the will of the international community and calls upon more senior levels of the Government to take control and amend laws to facilitate the destruction of stockpiles of all tiger parts and the phasing out of tiger farms.

EIA also wants the Government to send a clear message to all breeders, consumers and the industry that official policy is to end all demand and trade.

Debbie Banks, Head of EIA's Tiger Campaign, said: "The stark contradiction between China's international posture supporting efforts to save the wild tiger and its inward-facing domestic policies which stimulate demand and ultimately drive the poaching of wild tigers represents one of the biggest cons ever perpetrated in the history of tiger conservation.

Intolerable disconnect between words and deeds

"Pro-tiger trade policies are championed by only a handful of officials in a couple of Government departments and it behooves China to vigorously address and terminate this intolerable disconnect between words and deeds which so undermines international efforts to save the tiger."

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/china-tiger-con.html

Camera traps deployed to catch tiger poachers in Russia

First time camera traps are used to catch illegal activity 

November 2012. Conservationists from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) will be the first to use camera traps specifically for catching trespassers. Camera traps are typically used to capture images of endangered species for conservation purposes. But in a bid to increase anti-poaching efforts, special camera traps will be camouflaged and hidden in Russian forests to record illegal entry by would-be poachers.

Lazovsky Nature Reserve and Zov Tigra National Park
As part of ZSL's ‘Forest Eyes' project, a total of 30 camera traps will be set up in Lazovsky Nature Reserve and Zov Tigra National Park in the Russian Far East, equivalent to a total area a little larger than London. The two protected areas are 15 to 20 kilometres apart and separated by public land used mostly for hunting and logging. This results in people taking advantage of the area between the nature reserve and the national park to trespass onto nearby protected areas.

ZSL tiger conservationist Linda Kerley says: "The images from camera traps set up for humans will better inform us of any illegal activity in protected areas, so inspectors can be notified and patrols changed accordingly. We will be able to monitor the area more effectively and ensure we are doing all we can to try and change people's attitudes and behaviours towards poaching," Linda added.

Continued:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/amur-tiger-poacher.html

British charity backs tiger tourism ban

Tiger tourism restrictions in India should be welcomed - According to Care for the Wild
August 2012. Care for the Wild International (CWI) has joined other wildlife protection and conservation groups in welcoming moves by the Indian Government to place restrictions on tourists gaining access to certain zones in India's forty tiger reserves. 

In a landmark ruling the Indian Supreme Court ruled that tourists should be restricted from critical tiger habitats in all the National tiger reserves. Tourists will continue to be able to gain access to buffer zones on the edge of tiger habitats, but these will be around six miles from the key protection zones. 

According to CWI - A century ago the tiger population of India exceeded 100,000 but today there are estimated to be less that 1700 remaining in the wild. A combination of poaching, human wildlife conflict, habitat destruction and the negative impact of tourism in the tiger reserves have all contributed to this huge collapse in numbers.

Responding to the Indian Supreme Court Ruling the Chief Executive of Care for the Wild Philip Mansbridge said: "We welcome the planned restrictions on tiger tourism in India. For too long tigers have been a key driver for tourism but little consideration has been given to the negative impact that large numbers of people and vehicles can have on tigers and their habitats, such as the death of a tigress and her two cubs following a collision with a tour vehicle in one of the tiger reserves earlier this year.

Tourism can play a valuable role in promoting tiger conservation but as we have been promoting as part of our www.RIGHT-tourism.org campaign, it does need to be strictly controlled, and the welfare and protection of tigers must be the first priority for the Indian Government."

Continued:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/ban-tiger-tourism.html

Worth More Alive III

2 marathons & Kilimanjaro dressed as a tiger in aid of tiger conservation

Award-winning wildlife photographer, guide and conservationist, Paul Goldstein, is embarking on an extraordinary journey: Running the Brighton marathon, scaling Africa’s highest peak, Kilimanjaro (5895m), then 'running' the London marathon - all of which he will be doing in a 9ft tall tiger costume...in one week! Plus hosting a special charity event at the Royal Geographical Society.

 

In mid-April Paul Goldstein will be running the Brighton Marathon, then flying to Tanzania with Exodus’ Head of Product, Jim Eite, with his tiger suit in tow to guide a trek on Kilimanjaro. Then running the London Marathon on his return. All in the name of raising money and awareness for the plight of the Bengal tiger.

Read on:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/tiger-conservation.html