More Indian Tigers This Year
A bright spot on the news front today! This year's tiger census has been completed in India and the tiger population is up 20% over the previous count. This year there are 1,706 tigers in India; in 2007 there were only 1,411. India holds half of the world's wild tiger population. Updated technology this year included a tiger count in the Indian portion of the Sundarbans in West Bengal (the world's largest tidal mangrove forest in the world is found largely in Bangladesh), clocking in at 70 tigers which weren't included in previous counts. There are still concerns about shrinking tiger corridors, or the strips of land connecting tiger reserves, and the effects of poaching, which remains a lucrative business. 1,706 tigers this year is a long way from the 100,000 tigers at the turn of the last century. But I think we can celebrate small victories.
