Big Cat Fight

Can private owners help save a species?

March 15, 2008

Yes By Brian Werner Private ownership can be the “missing link” to saving the tiger from extinction. THE EFFECTIVENESS of tiger conservation programs should be rated by the numbers of living tigers. Are the numbers of these animals increasing? The answer is clearly NO; in fact, they are decreasing in numbers. This shows that the monetary “investment” and the current trend of conservation planning are NOT successful, and that it is time for a change. You wouldn’t continue investing in the same manner while planning your retirement, and neither should millions of dollars be spent on ineffective conservation programs that don’t conserve. In the last fifteen years, an estimated $15 million has gone into tiger conservation in the wild, and yet the tigers’ numbers continue to decline. For tigers to survive in the wild, they need a landmass the size of Texas that’s undisturbed. Can you show me that? There is no such. All these game preserves are zoos without fences. There are protected areas in Asia and Asia Minor that have been set up as Tiger Conservation Units (TCUs), many of which lack safe corridors for long-term management. The moment the tiger walks outside that area, he’s shot and killed. And often they’re even hunted within the park. So to me, they’re still captive. They still are being managed. And they don’t have the genetic diversity available to maintain themselves long-term. We want to see tigers survive in the wild, ideally. But the reality is, that’s just buying time, because clearly they’re going to go extinct in the wild. To save this species from extinction will require a human intervention, and sadly, that will be in captivity. And that means it’s going to involve the private sector, because zoological facilities simply do not have enough space. To understand how important organized private captive husbandry of wild felines is to conservation, one must consider that all American Zoological Association accredited zoos combined have a total of about 1,760 spaces available for the large felines: the lion, tiger, jaguar, leopard, cheetah, cougar, and snow leopard. The captive management of so many species for long-term genetic health, with so few enclosure spaces available, has necessitated many compromises, such as providing captive habitat for only one race of 24 subspecies of leopard, only one race of African lion, and only three of the five subspecies of tiger. A private owner, by contrast, can keep 20 or 30 tigers. Zoos micromanage less than 10 percent of the total captive tiger population, descended from founder stock that represents less than 3 percent of available tiger genomes. Private holdings represent 97 percent of the tiger genomes, but they are not being properly documented or managed. The main focus of the Feline Conservation Federation (FCF) and the Tiger Missing Link Foundation is to try to protect these animals that are disappearing in the wild and take them “Beyond Extinction.” As with other species, the genetic diversity of tigers is crucial for avoiding the well-known hazards of inbreeding. Many of the current captive tiger populations suffer from hip dysplasia, cross-eyes, weakened immune systems, abnormalities, and birth defects. Sound genetic management must be based on DNA testing, because genetic studies supply conservation scientists and ecological managers with new insights regarding the extent of diversity among the individuals in a population. TigerLink is the only agency actively pursuing the DNA testing of captive tigers. Our ex situ conservation efforts involve genetic testing and management, sound husbandry practices, and the implementation of a captive managed program known as the Tiger Species Enhancement Program/Plan (TSEP). We have implemented a clearinghouse/database of tiger populations within the private sector known as the “American Tiger Registry,” with the goal of bringing all tigers and tiger owners together under one umbrella and determining the genetic makeup of the undocumented captive tigers. TigerLink is working to identify the subspecific affiliations and relationships of these unknown tigers through DNA analysis and genetic research. In this way, private ownership can be the “missing link” to saving the tiger from extinction.

(Annie Gottlieb)

Read Werner's latest response (May 24, 2008)

Read opposing view by Nyhus and Tilson (March 15, 2008)

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