Orphaned Rare Tiger Cub Discovered

by Becky A. Dayhuff

A rare Amur tiger cub was discovered wandering in search of food near a forest village in eastern Russia on January 26.

According to representatives of a local ecology group, the Phoenix Fund, the cub was orphaned in December when poachers killed its mother and litter mate.

Ecologists had attempted to feed the cub to keep it away from the village; however, the cub resorted to hunting domestic animals in order to survive.

Due to its endangered status the cub will be relocated to a remote area and monitored while it learns to hunt wild game.

The Amur tiger, also known as the Siberian tiger, is the largest cat in the world. Adult males can reach over 10 feet in length and weigh 660 pounds. Adult females are over 8 feet in length with a weight of 375 pounds.

Their numbers have rapidly decreased and experts now believe there are less than 450 remaining in the wild.

Pressure from poaching, illegally set forest fires, and human encroachment into traditional tiger territory have pushed the tigers to the brink of extinction. Experts believe that the Siberian tiger may disappear completely from the wild within the next 30-40 years due to a lack of mature breeding females.

Five Amur tigers have died in the Vladivostok region of Russia so far this winter. Three of the five were killed by poachers who sell the hides for as much as $20,000 each.

© 2004 Animal News Center, Inc.