Tiger Numbers Rise For First Time In a Century

Brian Clark Howard, writing for National Geographic: At last -- some good news for tigers. Driven largely by conservation successes in India, Russia, and Nepal, the global population of tigers in the wild has shown a significant increase in the past few years, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) reports in a new survey. The report comes as national leaders meet in India to discuss next steps for saving the iconic -- and highly endangered -- species. The study estimates that there are now 3,890 wild tigers, up from 3,200 in 2010, when countries announced a historic commitment to double the population by 2022. Countries appear to be heading toward their goal, and this is the first time tiger numbers have been increasing globally in more than a hundred years. "We're positively surprised by the numbers, which validate what we thought has been happening thanks to conservation efforts," says Ginette Hemley, senior vice president for conservation at WWF.

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[ganjadude]

HIV? no, no one needs tiger blood

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[NatasRevol]

It's i squared.

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[Anonymous Coward]

Oh, come on now. Tiger numbers increasing is clear evidence that man-made global warming is scientific fact. I'm not sure how just yet, but as soon as I get a multi-million dollar grant to prove it, I'll get right on it.

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[Tighe_L]

LOL, so true.

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[Anonymous Coward]

A tiger? In Africa?

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[r1348]

I doubt a tiger has ever tasted zebra meat...

Re:In other news

[Flavianoep]

Sorry, but that is not how the world works. It's not only the substance of a proposition that matters, the form is also important. That's because most people think that important matters must be serious. When you listed tiger prey as if tigers lived in Africa, you transformed your argument into laughing stock. And because your argument is now laughing stock in the form, its substance will be disregarded. Therefore, you lost. LOL L00ZR!

Re: In other news

[Anonymous Coward]

You weren't wondering any such thing. Your comment above reads as mockery of conservationists, which is funny on the Simpsons,but don't be surprised when you get derision for your own mistakes.

and amazing accomplishment

[cats-paw]

Between the tiger parts in "traditional medicine" idiocy in China and human population pressures in India, the fact the numbers actually increased is borderline miraculous.

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[delt0r]

My cat would kill me and all humans, for a bowl of milk, if she could work out how. I know cats like milk, but she is crazy about milk.

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[Jason Levine]

Now if only they can squash that whole "rhino horn is an aphrodesiac" nonsense, maybe the rhinos can make a comeback too.

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[Darinbob]

It's all so that Putin has more tigers to ride on.

Re:First Time In a Century?

[cogeek]

Not everyone had Statistics in college, sadly... The last sample was from 2010, 6 years ago. At that time the population was 3,200. Now in 2016 there are 3,890. Obviously during that 6 year period, the numbers were on the rise. It's still the first time the numbers have gone up at a sampling point in a century (sadly we have to trust the headline on this since the writer of the article apparently skipped Journalism 101 and doesn't cite when the last time the population increase was).

and we solved global warming

[known_coward_69]

Fuck1ng cold here in the northeast and snowing out west in the USA

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[tlhIngan]

Fuck1ng cold here in the northeast and snowing out west in the USA

It's why we call it "climate change" now more than "global warming" because the latter implies that everywhere gets hotter. While that is true, what you don't see is the methods that arise in attempting to bring the heat back down again.

Hurricanes and tornadoes are easy to see (they're heat engines that get their power from the ocean warmth, that's why they die out over land pretty quickly), enough to drop the local temperature 3-5C (6-9F) of

Other cats

[cyberchondriac]

Now if they can just do the same for the Cheetah.

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[Anonymous Coward]

It's more difficult with cheetahs, because cheetahs never prosper.

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[operagost]

Maybe their counts are up, but it's hard to tell. It's easy to catch a tiger by the toe, but cheetahs are really fast.

EENIE MEENIE MINEY MOE!

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[Sir Holo]

Maybe their counts are up, but it's hard to tell. It's easy to catch a tiger by the toe, but cheetahs are really fast.

EENIE MEENIE MINEY MOE!

I always choose to let him go.

I guess

[rossdee]

This has something to do with the new Jungle Book movie

I like tigers

[neo-mkrey]

they are my favorite animal.

so...

[JustNiz]

How much of this success is due to rich people willing to pay upwards of $70k each to preserves to go hunt one?

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[JustNiz]

sorry I meant reserves not preserves. Damn pre-1st-coffee typos.

If you want to donate ...

[fahrbot-bot]

... I recommend Panthera [panthera.org], Panthera [wikipedia.org]. They focus efforts on conservation of the world's largest, most imperiled cats: tigers, lions, jaguars and snow leopards, and also developing conservation programs for cheetahs, leopards and cougars. The also took over administration of the Save the Tiger Fund from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Their Board of Directors covers all the organization's fund raising costs.

From their FAQ [panthera.org]:

Where do my donations go?
100% of your donation goes directly to Panthera’s Conservation and Education Programs, as our fundraising costs are covered by Panthera’s Board of Directors.

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[Sir Holo]

Pantera? Really?

There are way better metal bands.

Look around. Upgrade your taste in music, dude.

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[delt0r]

Cheetahs are kinda of boned. There population was just too small in the last ice age, and now the population is too inbreed.

The real reason why

[Gravis Zero]

If Tiger Woods had 26 mistresses, how many mistresses do you think actual tigers have?! ;)