Tigers: the biggest cats in danger

Tiger

As a large predator, tigers play a key role in maintaining healthy ecosystems. These ecosystems supply both nature and people with fresh water, food, and health. This big cat has evolved over thousands of years and was once prosperous in its numbers. However, this once blooming species has population dropped as few as 3,200. They are being trapped, skinned and pushed out of its home. Those left in the wild cling to survival, barely, in a few patches of forest scattered across

What have we done on them?

Tigers are group animals that live in a large family unit. And they need a lot of space to run. Yet, tigers have lost 93% of their historic range. Their habitat has been destroyed and degraded by human activities, including the cleaning of forests for agriculture and timber trade, the building of road networks. Fewer tigers can survive in small and scattered lands of habitat, as it increases the risk of inbreeding and poaching.

People and tigers continue to compete for space. This does not only pose threats to the wild tigers, but also poses a major problem for communities living near or in tiger forest. As forests are shrinking and preys get scarce, tigers are forced to hunt beyond the wild and go for domestic livestock. In retaliation, tigers are killed or captured by the local people. Those captured tigers are usually and unfortunately ended up in black markets.

I saw tigers once, in zoos. They looked very beautiful and I admire them in every part. Yet, they don’t belong to zoos. We destroy their land, kill them and sell them. All for our own interest. Humans put oursevles the top of food chain,  but look at what we’re doing right now, do we deserve this title?

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