Posted on 15 November
2010
Beijing, China - WWF’s newest recommendations
on protecting wild Amur tigers in China’s
northeast show the huge potential the area
has to support one of the world’s most iconic
and endangered species.
Recommendations on China’s Amur Tiger Protection
Plan is based on a recent study on the potential
tiger habitat in the Changbaishan areas
of Northeast China,
which borders the Russian Far East and North
Korea. The study, a joint work of WWF, WSC,
and experts from Northeast Normal University
of China, KORA and University of Montana
was released early this year.
Amur tiger numbers could
now be as high as 500
The study suggests that
effective protection measures over the past
50 years has helped the Amur tiger bounce
back in the Russian Far East, boosting the
population to 430-500 today, which makes
it possible for Amur tigers to migrate into
neighboring China.
The study says that large tracts of forest
in Changbaishan and other areas of Northeast
China can support the migrating tigers and
provide the conditions necessary to maintain
tiger habitat and prey over the long term.
Approximately 38,500 km 2 of potential tiger
habitat remains in the Changbaishan landscape.
The study divides this into nine Tiger Conservation
Priority Areas (TPAs), which consist of
prime habitat surrounded and connected by
lower quality forest that allows movement
between patches. These connections ensure
breeding population of tigers have access
to what they need to survive.
In addition to the nine
TPAs, the recommendations also identify
a new TPA in the Wandashan region, another
key area for tigers in Northeast China.
Meanwhile, Xiaoxinganling - also in the
northeast - is recommended as an area that
warrants further study as a potential home
for Amur tigers.
For each priority area,
WWF proposes detailed and practical protection
and recovery approaches including
Establishing new nature
reserves & expanding and improving existing
ones;
Establishing ecological corridors between
large patches of potential tiger habitat
to facilitate the movement of tiger population;
Improving habitat and prey quality and quantity,
Promoting tiger-friendly forest management;
Monitoring tigers, prey and habitat, and
reintroducing prey species;
Developing alternative livelihoods to reduce
the potential impact of tiger conservation
on local communities.
The recommendations also set a goal of protecting
40,000 km 2 of tiger habitat and 50 tigers
in China by 2020.
“Without immediate, strong action, the next
few years will be catastrophic for wild
tigers, and leave the species beyond recovery,”
says Dr. Zhu Chunquan, WWF China Conservation
Director of Biodiversity.
“The recommendations
are based on solid scientific research and
are extremely important for Amur tiger protection
field work,” Dr. Zhu added.
Maintaining the momentum
of Amur Tiger protection before the Tiger
Summit, which will be held in St. Petersburg
from 21 – 24 November, WWF China had also
established WWF-China Amur Tiger Expert
Committee chaired by Ma Jianzhang, academician
of the Chinese Academy of Engineering on
October 17.
The new recommendations
represent a joint collaboration by WWF and
experts from China’s Northeast Forestry
University, Jilin Provincial Academy of
Forestry Sciences and Northeast Normal University.
WWF hopes that it will serve as an important
reference for wild Amur tiger protection
policy-making and can be incorporated into
Chinese government’s wild Amur tiger protection
plans.
