Wild tigers remain critically depleted after a century of population collapse, but conservation efforts have prevented extinction and offer realistic hope for recovery, according to the first comprehensive IUCN Green Status assessment for the species released Thursday.
The evaluation, led by Wildlife Conservation Society scientists in collaboration with WWF, Panthera and other partners, found that tigers now occupy only 10 of 46 countries where they historically bred and are extinct in nine of 24 spatial units analyzed. Yet conservation work has demonstrably slowed declines and prevented the species from vanishing in up to seven additional areas.
Current wild tiger populations stand at approximately 4,500 to 5,500 individuals, though estimates vary. If restored to all suitable historic habitat through natural recolonization or reintroduction, the population could potentially reach over 25,000, more than five times current numbers, according to Luke Hunter, Executive Director of WCS’s Big Cat Program and lead assessment author.
The Green Status framework, which complements the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, measures both extinction risk and recovery potential. Tigers remain classified as Endangered globally, with more than half of remaining populations considered regionally Critically Endangered.
The assessment rated tigers’ Conservation Legacy as High, indicating that sustained protection over recent decades significantly slowed declines. Without this intervention, tigers would likely have faced extinction across most of their range, researchers concluded.
South Asia has seen notable recoveries, particularly in India, which now hosts roughly 75% of the world’s wild tigers. India’s population grew from approximately 1,706 in 2010 to around 3,682 by 2022, representing one of the few major conservation success stories for the species.
Southeast Asia presents a contrasting picture. The region continues experiencing steep declines and local extinctions, though targeted efforts in Thailand’s Western Forest Complex and Malaysia’s Central Forest landscape demonstrate that recovery remains possible where resources and political will align.
Abishek Harihar, Director of Panthera’s Tiger Program, noted that recent recoveries highlight considerable potential to boost populations and restore ecological roles, but cautioned that Southeast Asia’s crisis underscores ongoing threats including habitat loss, prey depletion, poaching and human wildlife conflict.
Tigers now persist in countries including Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam. They have vanished from Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and across Central Asia, representing massive range contractions from historical distributions.
The assessment identifies medium term Recovery Potential, suggesting that intensified conservation could secure survival and enable substantial population increases over the next century. Under optimistic scenarios, as many as 11 spatial units could achieve viable status with ecological functions restored across key landscapes.
However, recovery depends on sustained political will, investment and local engagement. Without ongoing conservation, extinction risk would rise dramatically, with tigers potentially disappearing from up to eight more spatial units.
Specific landscapes showing promise include Russia’s Land of the Leopard National Park, Northeast China Tiger Leopard National Park, Thailand’s Western Forest Complex, Malaysia’s Endau Rompin and greater Taman Negara, and regions across Nepal and Bhutan.
Thomas Gray, assessment co-author and WWF’s Tiger Recovery Lead, said the decline in range also represents opportunity for conservationists to collaborate with governments and communities to drive recovery and expand tiger territory across Asia.
The assessment acknowledges that tiger populations recover slowly, meaning major changes remain unlikely over the next decade despite conservation efforts. Habitat fragmentation, illegal trade and human settlement patterns continue constraining recovery across much of the species’ potential range.
Molly Grace, Lecturer at University of Oxford and Co-Chair of the IUCN Green Status Working Group, said the assessment provides formal documentation of conservation success in preventing greater past declines, showing that efforts have worked and realistic hope exists for future recovery.
The Green Status approach aims to inspire greater ambition by demonstrating how species can move beyond merely avoiding extinction toward achieving recovery and ecological functionality. For tigers, this means restoring their role as apex predators regulating prey populations and maintaining ecosystem balance.
Critics of tiger conservation sometimes question whether resources devoted to charismatic megafauna might better serve broader biodiversity goals. Supporters counter that tigers serve as umbrella species, with habitat protection benefiting countless other organisms sharing their ecosystems.
The assessment involved comprehensive evaluation of historical data, current population surveys, habitat analyses and threat assessments across tiger range countries. It represents years of collaborative work among conservation organizations, government agencies and research institutions.
Whether optimistic recovery scenarios materialize depends on factors including funding availability, governance quality, enforcement capacity against poaching, land use planning that maintains connectivity between tiger populations, and community support for conservation initiatives.
Source: newsghana.com.gh
