"Save Tigers Now" Campaign Launches

Hi animal lovers,

WWF has launched a new partnership with Leonardo DiCaprio in the "Save Tigers Now"  campaign for the Chinese year of the tiger, 2010.  This campaign is an awesome one, and has been long awaited.  Did you know that as little as 3,200 tigers remain in the wild?  This means that the habitat of tigers has declined 97 per cent in the past 100 years. This is a catastrophic decline.  Illegal killing to make money on the black market is the main cause for the huge dip in wild tiger populations.  Poachers are killing tigers and selling their fur, bones and organs illegally.  If the population of these beautiful creatures continues to decline at such a rate, extinction is inevitable within the next few decades. 


Map of tiger populations



Tigers are considered an "umbrella species".  This means that if we protect their habitat, thousands of other species will benefit,  including humans.  Putting a stop to the killing could help to save other endangered species, give strength to local communities and improve law enforcement.  So basically, lots of benefits will come from saving tigers!



WWF has just launched a partnership with Leonardo DiCaprio (love him!) to shut down poachers and engage governments in making commitments to resources and protection of tigers. Their goal is to double the number of tigers in the wild by 2022 - the next year of the tiger.  WWF is focusing on countries where the tigers are still found.  There are actually 13 tiger range countries (TRCs), meaning countries where wild tigers are still found:  Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam. Heads of government representing each of these countries will be attending a “Tiger Summit” in St. Petersburg, Russia, set for November 21-24. At the summit, the countries will be focusing their rescue methods on tiger conservation landscapes. DiCaprio has said that he will be traveling to India to support the cause of tigers.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Saving tigers is incredibly important.  Once they are gone, that’s it, they’re gone.  This is a really scary and devastating thought.  Once again, awareness needs to be raised.  If we aren't accessing the WWF website or other animal activist websites often, there is no way to know about these alarming statistics.  Let's spread the word guys!  Twitter and facebook are great ways to get the information out there.


Funds are also needed to help support the patrollers on the ground, strengthen projects and assemble political will so governments will commit to strategies to give tigers a future.  You can help this fight by accessing the WWF website here.

                                                                         

Here's a quote from Leo:

"Key conservation efforts can save the tiger species from extinction, protect some of the planet's last wild habitats and help sustain the communities surrounding them.  By protecting this iconic species, we can save so much more” –Leonardo DiCaprio

Victoria xo.




p.s check out this great blog about saving tigers, here.