|
This page is going to be a very heartfelt one for me and should evoke some emotion if you are an animal lover yourself. I have shed many tears over the years watching and hearing about the depletion and extinction of different species and will continue to shed many more as these senseless losses continue. Tigers are among the top three that hold the dearest place in my heart so that's what I will talk about first. I don't want my future children to have to ask what a tiger was but the way things are going that may sadly enough be the reality.
Tigers
Tigers are among the most beautiful animals on earth but like many others (which I will include a few) they are being slaughtered to the point of extinction. There are only 5 subspecies remaining of 8. The remaining tiger population may be completely eradicated soon after the turn of the century. This is heartbreaking and needless, please do what you can to get the word out there and save these majestic creatures!!!!
The Bali tiger was the smallest of the 8 subspecies but yet considered by some the prettiest of them all. These are now extinct, mostly because of hunters!!! The last one was said to be a female shot to death in 1937.
The only way we will ever again know the beauty of the Caspian tiger is through pictures. They too became extinct in the 1970's!
There are not even any real pictures of the Javan tiger that I could find so had to use this one. They lived on the Indonesian Island of Java and are said to have become extinct in the 1980's! I will update this pic if I ever find a real one.
The most critically endangered is the South China tiger whose numbers have plummeted alarmingly. In 1949 there were a reported 4000, today there are fewer than 50. Their chances for recovery are very grave because they suffer from genetic diversity and low reproduction. These may soon become extinct as well!
The Indo-Chinese tiger- Not much is known about their status as of yet but it is estimated that 900-1200 remain in isolated reserves and about 60 live in zoos.
The Siberian tiger is also severely threatened. In 1991 alone one third of them were slaughtered for body parts which are used in Chinese medicine. There are approximately 200 Siberians left in the wild today. Somewhere around 500 are managed internationally in conservation programs!
What a beauty this is...The Sumatran tiger population is said to be around 400-500, of these 400 are found in 5 national parks and 2 game reserves. The remaining live outside the reserves. Their habitat will be lost to expanding development in the near future!
The Bengal tiger is the most hearty of all remaining. They make up about two thirds of the exisiting tiger population. There are between 2700-4300 remaining and live on over 100 reserves. Approximately 340 live in captivity!
Contrary to popular belief the White tiger is not an albino!!! They are jsut white colored Bengal tigers, not a separate subspecies. Basically they are freaks of nature, born to those that carry the rare gene needed to give them the white coloring. They have blue eyes, pink noses, their fur is creamy white with chocolate brown to black stripes. Wild white Bengals are extremely rare!
In order for the tiger to survive in the wild they need water to drink, animals to hunt and places to hide. As the forests. jungles and mountains disappear so do the tigers. Agricultural and industrial expansion force them into smaller and smaller areas. These areas are rapidly increasing with human population which means more illegal hunting. Without wilderness the tigers WILL NOT SURVIVE!!!!
The average rate of vertebrate extinction over the past 200 million years was about 90 species per century. Today there is a general extinction rate of 140 species per day!!!!This can't go on, please help spread the word and stop this needless senseless depletion of wildlife!
I will be adding a pictures gallery eventually when I can figure out how to make thumbnails. I have collected many many pictures of these beautiful cats over the years and want to share them. Please return for the other endangered animals I will be adding such as the polar bear and the wolf. I hope you found this a little bit informative or that it touched your heart. Thank you!
Once again I give credit to Robin ..I think she knew I was coming up with all these ideas and made the perfect backgrounds. You will not be sorry if you visit her place in cyberspace!!
|