Surge in seizures of captive-bred tigers strengthens call for Asia to close all tiger farms

Viet Nam has also become an increasingly significant hub for tiger trafficking and home to a growing number of tiger farms – close to 40 per cent of the country’s reported seizures came from captive facilities. Its role in the illegal tiger trade was highlighted by the Wildlife Justice Commission at its public hearing this week in The Hague. Overall, there are estimated to be more than 7,000 tigers in farms in Asia, mostly in China, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam.

With commercial tiger breeding in Asia threatening the future of the world’s remaining wild tigers, governments must announce concrete steps to close all the continent’s tiger farms within the next three years at the international conference on illegal wildlife trade starting tomorrow in Viet Nam.

I think all governments should support an Indian government proposal to create a regional stripe pattern database that can compare images of seized tiger skins with camera trap photos of wild tigers and photos of captive tigers; compile sets of DNA markers from both wild and captive tiger populations within their country; and launch focused, evidence-based behavioural change programmes to reduce demand for tiger parts and products. Along with announcing plans to close all tiger farms, Asian governments can also take a series of immediate, concrete steps to ensure captive-bred tigers do not enter the illegal trade chain before the closures take effect.


 http://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?284611/Surge-in-seizures-of-captive-bred-tigers-strengthens-call-for-Asia-to-close-all-tiger-farms