Update on Thailand’s tigers

“I’ve been finding out more about the teams that TigerTime supports in the eastern forest complex, one of 20 forest complexes in Thailand. Today, it is thought that the Indochinese tiger remains in only three key areas in Thailand. With few of this tiger sub-species in captivity and only an estimated 150 – 250 left in the wild the Indochinese tiger, like its cousin the Sumatran tiger, faces a bleak future.Sadly, with no national census the estimated numbers could be as low as 100.

“The eastern forest complex is one of the last remaining strongholds for the Indochinese tigers and the team are working hard to increase enforcement capability, expand knowledge of the areas tiger population and sustain community support – which is vital in the fight to save the tiger and its forest home.

“But it’s a dangerous environment. Poaching is rife and fatalities among the forest teams are increasing. If we are to save this precious sub-species we have to maintain our funding, not just for the daily anti-poaching patrol teams but to raise awareness and understanding of the vital importance of the forest complexes and the biodiversity that they support.”

The rare Indochinese tiger is widely dispersed throughout six countries; Thailand, Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam. Although extensive habitat is available in some places, rapid human development is fragmenting habitats and forcing tigers into isolated refuges. The TigerTime team has been supporting work in Thailand since 2010 in what is now a critical landscape for tiger conservation.

You can find out more and support our work in Thailand here.