Tigers in Thap Lan & Pangsida
Quote:
Originally Posted by
robuzo
Apparently they are far from all gone:
Thailand jungles mask surprise rise in tiger numbers | Environment | The Guardian
Deep in the jungle, armed forest rangers trek through the palms on a mission to confirm some rare good news: the discovery of a wild tiger population in an area of Thap Lan national park previously written off by wildlife experts.
Working with foreign conservationists, the rangers have been gathering evidence from camera traps over the past two years that suggests this single national park in Thailand may have more tigers than China.
Robuso,
Unfortunately, there are no wild tigers in China. They only survive in zoos. The last recorded kill in the wild of a big cat was in the Bangkok Post a year or so ago. If any do survive, there would be a few in some isolated pocket.
Ironically, tigers have become extinct in the country where they first evolved. And everyone knows the Chinese traditional medicine is the root cause!
Tigers have been in Thap Lan and Pang Sida from the beginning. Both national parks are islands surrounded by a sea of humanity and disconnected from Khao Yai by Route 304.
Tigers of course have now been finally documented with camera-trap surveys funded by Freeland. But tigers have been persecuted to almost the point of no return. They are breeding here but how sustainable is the population?
The big "MUST" is absolute protection. All other things like research and development is secondary. After some elements in Thai society learn that tigers survive in a given area, these law breakers will do their utmost to influence locals to hunt the big cats for large rewards for a sack of tigers bones now known to fetch as much as 100,000 baht.
This alone temps the poor villager to break the law. And his tools of the trade: 50 baht buys some rope to snare a bait animal and then poison to kill tigers and other animals like bear, civet and others creatures that come to rotting carcasses.
The middle men who ply this trade must be apprehended and put away along with the big fish who is politically connected. This will be a tough one to enforce. There is too much money at stake.
However. this is great news that Thailand has three great tiger reserves including Huai Kha Khaeng/Thung Yai Naresuan wildlife sanctuaries plus Keang Krachan Forest complex that also includes Kui Buri National Park.
After news came out on TV a few years ago that the World Heritage Site had many tigers (about 100 was the figure put out on national TV by researchers), poachers sneaked in and did their dirty work. One unfortunate aspect of advertising that tigers do exist in a forest is almost like a death knell.
Shortly after the TV program, three tigers including a mother and two cubs were poisoned. Only one was de-boned and the poachers escaped leaving the pelt.
Sad to say, it is the ranger patrolling that has too many loopholes. The quality is frankly poor due to several factors that are well known like poor pay and sometimes no pay for months on end for the rangers. Incentive is very low among the ranks.
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is in charge of the patrolling regime in Huai Kha Khaeng/Thung Yai complex. Recently, a group of rangers and two WCS researchers were sent on a 10 day walk deep into the interior. The rangers were pulled away from their duties to protect the area around their station to do a 'transect survey' for research. This is just one example of how the New York based NGO operates and mismanages the patrolling for their own mandate of research.
Cash money is also given to the rangers for food who end up buying whiskey, sometimes by the crate. I have been on the ground throughout both sanctuaries and know what goes on.
In the meantime, I camera-trapped poachers about an hour's walk south from the station. They tried to steal my camera but were unable to so due to the tough aluminum case and stainless steel cable wrapped around a large tree.
These photos have been passed on to the new chief Uthai Chansuk, who is trying to improve protection and enforcement. But with a poor budget, he has a tough road ahead. I wish him luck. Some serious management and improvement of funding, new personnel, patrolling and enforcement is the only key to saving the tiger wherever they survive.
The Kingdom of Thailand can be proud that tigers and other rare Asian animals still thrive in a few protected areas. It is now up to the powers-to-be to take stiff and decisive action, and to improve the future of the magnificent tiger and natural heritage before it is too late!
http://brucekekule.com/wp-content/ga...khaeng-web.jpg
Indochinese tiger camera-trapped in Huai Kha Khaeng in late April, 2011
