The Year of the Tiger
| March 10, 2010 | Posted by Lisa Sharp under Uncategorized |
It’s the year of the tiger, the perfect time to bring awareness to the quickly disappearing tiger.
There are as few as 3,200 tigers remaining in the wild today. Their habits are disappearing, less than 7% of their original habit remains. They are also being killed for their body parts which are used in Chinese medicine and for their skins.
Their habits are being lost largely due to agriculture use and the timber trade. The loss of space is making them easier targets for poachers and cutting down the number of prey. This also puts them closer to humans which means they are killed out of fear of attack or for protection of domestic animals.
Chinese medicine is a big reason tigers are being killed. Tiger bones have been used in Chinese medicine for at least 1,000 years. Their teeth, claws and whiskers are also believed to bring people luck. Even the tiger’s penis is highly sought after. It is thought to be an aphrodisiac and is used in soup. While this is illegal it’s still happening.
We must fight to save the few remaining tigers. How sad would it be for the next generations to only know tigers from zoos? At this rate it won’t be long before they are gone from the wild forever. Check out the WWF website to learn more how you can help save the tigers.
