Today is Tiger Day in Russia
Published 23 September, 2007, 06:04
Russia is celebrating Tiger Day. The centre of events will be in Vladivostok, the capital of the Primorsky region, which has become the last remaining habitat of the Amur tiger.
Around 90 per cent of Amur tigers live in Russia. This fact has earned them a holiday in the Russian calendar.
Tiger Day dates back to 2000 when it was first celebrated in the city of Vladivostok in the Far East. Since then the holiday has been given official status.
The Amur or Siberian tiger is depicted on Vladivostok's city emblem as well as the emblem of the Primorsky region.
Its population was almost wiped out in the 1930s when estimates put the number of tigers left in the wild at fewer than 50.
The reasons behind the almost complete extinction of the species vary from poaching and the destruction of its natural habitat to war.
There were a lot tigers in Korea but in 1910 the Japanese captured the Korean Peninsula. To break the country's spirit they let out the energy of Chi, which they thought was in tigers. They completely destroyed the population of these predators.
Now according to the latest count in 2005 there are around 500 of them. But even so the species is listed as critically endangered.
Efforts to save the Siberian tiger are conducted within the Species Survival Plan, which aims to lift the numbers of animals by using a captive breeding programme. However, the possibility of releasing the cats into the wild is small since the animals lack the necessary hunting skills and can starve to death.
It's hoped that Tiger Day held on September 23 this year will promote public awareness for the need to preserve these graceful cats for future generations.
