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Less than 35 Amur leopard remain in the wild mongabay.com April 19, 2007
"The recent census confirmed once again that the Amur leopard survives on very shaky ground," said Pavel Fomenko, biodiversity conservation program coordinator at the Far-Eastern branch of WWF in Russia. Fomenko said development pressures, new roads, poaching, exploitation of forests, and climate change are driving the Amur leopard towards extinction, but that conservation efforts could save the species. "From my perspective, the leopards' exact number is not the big question. What is really important is that the predator is on the brink of extinction. And still a unified protected area with national park status has not been established, which is the most important thing for the leopards' survival."
"Maybe this is the reason why leopards practically completely disappeared from the Korean Peninsula and north-east China," said Dr. Pikunov. "At the beginning of the past century, the Far Eastern leopard was a common species in the southern parts of Sikhote-Alin and in some Khanka lake areas. Right now it roams only in south-west Primorye." The good news from the census, which was conducted by World Wildlife Fund, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and the Pacific Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Science, is that Amur leopard populations appear to be increasing: the 2000 census listed a range or 22-28 animals, the 2003 census showed 28-30 animals, and the 2007 census estimated 25-34 animals. Related articles Chinese prefer tigers in the wild over tigers on their plates (7/2/2008) A new survey shows that most Chinese would rather have tigers living in the wild than tiger products on their dinner plates. However the poll also revealed some notable contradictions in attitudes toward the trade in tiger parts. Nepal's tiger population plummets due to poaching (7/2/2008) Nepal's tiger population have plummeted due to poaching and a booming trade in their parts, according to a government survey released Tuesday. Major tiger conservation effort gets underway (6/10/2008) A broad alliance of environmentalits, scientists, and celebrities have teamed with the World Bank Group and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to help protect wild tigers. India has 1400 tigers -- not 3500 (3/13/2008) A census of India's reserves found 1,411 tigers rather than the 3,508 estimated previously, according to the State Ministry of Environment and Forests. $100 billion worth of carbon released from deforestation in Riau, Sumatra (2/27/2008) A WWF study found that deforestation of nearly 10.5 million acres of tropical forests and peat swamp in central Sumatra's Riau Province over the past 25 years has generated 3.7 gigatons of carbon dioxide. Based on today's $32 closing price for a ton of carbon dioxide for European Union Allowances, the emissions had a theoretical trading value of $118 billion, assuming they could have been traded at the full E.U. carbon price at the time (voluntary offsets would have been worth about $13 billion). 5,000 mile-long tiger corridor proposed (2/13/2008) The Wildlife Conservation Society and the Panthera Foundation announced plans to establish a 5,000 mile-long "genetic corridor" from Bhutan to Burma that would span eight countries and allow tiger populations to roam freely across the largest remaining block of tiger habitat. The plan has been endorsed by leading conservationists and the new King of Bhutan, his Majesty Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. Sumatran tiger faces extinction due to wildlife trade (2/12/2008) The critically endangered Sumatran Tiger faces extinction due to the tiger parts trade in Indonesia, reports a new report from TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network run by IUCN and WWF. Thailand's forests could support 2,000 tigers (12/19/2007) Thailand's network of parks could support 2,000 tigers, reports a new study by Thailand's Department of National Park, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation and the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society. Saving tigers in India (11/8/2007) Over the past century the number of tigers in India has fallen from about 40,000 to less than 4,000 (and possibly as few as 1,500). Relentless poaching and clearing of habitat for agriculture have been the primary drivers of this decline, though demand for tiger skins and parts for "medicinal" purposes has become an increasingly important threat in recent years. Asia's tigers could get big boost from small conservation efforts (11/5/2007) Small changes to the management of wildlife reservers in India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal could dramatically boost endangered tiger populations, reports a new study published in the journal Biological Conservation. Threatened Amur tiger shows signs of recovery (10/31/2007) In a world where many animals are under siege, the Amur tiger -- popularly known in the West as the Siberian tiger -- offers an encouraging message: the population of the huge cat is showing signs of recovery. First photos of a wild South China Tiger in 34 years (10/14/2007) While there has been proof that the South China Tiger still lives in the Shaanxi province--sightings by locals, findings of footprints, hair, and teeth--there has been no photographic evidence of this species since 1964. But on October 3rd a local farmer, Zhou Zhenglong, took a total of 71 pictures of a South China Tiger in the wild. For his efforts the farmer received a payment of 20,000 yuan. Congress urged to protect big cats, endangered dogs (9/7/2007) Efforts to protect many of the world's largest and most endangered wild relatives of cats and dogs recently moved a step closer to victory with a congressional hearing on the Great Cats and Rare Canids bill. Today's hearing was the first since the bill's introduction in 2004, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society and other environmental groups which support this legislative initiative. Chinese demand takes toll on wildlife in Burma (Myanmar) (9/4/2007) If the market of Mong La is anything to go by, the remaining wild elephants, tigers and bears in Myanmar's forests are being hunted down slowly and sold to China. Meeting seeks to save Sumatra's tigers and elephants from extinction (8/29/2007) Over 100 wildlife experts and government officials will meet in Indonesia Wednesday to draft an action plan to save Sumatran elephnts and tigers from extinction, reports Reuters. Rare three-legged tiger photographed in Sumatra (7/6/2007) A WWF camera trap has captured photos of a three-legged Sumatran tiger on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. WWF says the rare tiger likely escaped from a snare. The big cat seems otherwise healthy. Photo of white tigers born in Mexico (7/5/2007) Five white Bengal tigers born in April were put on display at the Guadalajara Zoo in Mexico reports the Associated Press. Indo-Chinese tiger spotted in China for first time in years (6/13/2007) Scientists captured a wild Indo-Chinese tiger on film in a nature reserve in China's southeastern Yunnan Province, reports the Worldwatch Institute. First park established in Russian Far East (6/8/2007) Russia has established the first national park in the far eastern part of the country. The initiative seeks to protect endangered Amur tigers from extinction. Tiger parts trade must be banned to save great cats (6/5/2007) Trade in tiger products must be banned if tigers are to survive in the wild, reports a study published in Bioscience. The paper, The Fate of Wild Tigers, characterizes the decline in wild tiger population as ,catastrophic, and urges governments to outlaw all trade in tiger products from wild and captive-bred sources as well as step up conservation efforts. - this report used quotes and information from WWF Comments? News options News index | RSS | Add to MyYahoo! Advertisements: Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing |
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