IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Jungius, H.; Chikin, Y.; Tsaruk, O.; Pereladova, O. | |
| Pre-feasibility study on the possible restoration of the caspian tiger in the Amu Darya Delta | |
| 2009 Full Book | |
The Caspian tigers occurred in eastern Turkey, the southern Caucasus, in northern Iran, Iraq, and in isolated pocket throughout Central Asia until northwestern China. In Central Asia the tiger was found along floodplains of rivers and in tall grass and reed beds along rivers and lakes. This type of riparian forest is called øTugaiñ and used to be widespread throughout the region. The tiger became extinct in the region about 30 year ago. The main reason for its disappearance in Central Asia was habitat destruction, hunting (bounty system) and extermination in order to guarantee safety conditions for colonists, in the process of agricultural land development, the latter accelerated destruction of remaining habitats and the decline of the tigers prey base due to over hunting. Stimulated by recent findings that the Amur tiger is the closest relative of the Caspian tiger, discussions started if the Amur tiger could be an appropriate subspecies for reintroduction into a save place in the Central Asia. The Amu Darya Delta was suggested as a potential site for such a project. A feasibility study was initiated, to investigate if the area is suitable and if such an initiative would receive support from the relevant decision makers. The project team analyzed the biological and ecological data of the species and its habitat. Factors for the species decline and extinction were analyzed. A detailed review, on the tigers history in Central Asia revealed that the species disappeared not long ago from the region, some records indicate that some individuals might still exist e.g. along the Ili river in Kazakhstan. The team visited the Amu Darya Delta to assess its suitability for the possible implementation of the project. The final conclusion of this assessment is that a viable tiger population of about 100 animals would require at least 500.000 ha of large tracts of contiguous habitat with rich prey populations. Such habitat is not available at this stage and can not be provided in the short term. The proposed region is therefore unsuitable for the reintroduction, at least at this stage of developments. |
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