Tigers in Danger: China Considers Lifting Ban

Can you imagine what it would be like if 95% of the U.S. population disappeared in a century? That's what has happened to tigers.

In the last 100 years, due to poaching for body parts and habitat destruction, the wild tiger population has dropped from an estimated 100,000 to only 5,000-7,000 today. That's the equivalent of the total U.S. population size dropping to that of the state of New York.

Now China wants to lift its ban on domestic trade in tiger parts, potentially driving the nail in the wild tiger's coffin.

The latest threat to these endangered big cats is the increasing population of captive-bred tigers on private tiger farms in China. The owners of these farms, who hope to profit from sales of tiger parts, are putting significant pressure on the Chinese government to lift the ban.

While proponents of lifting the ban claim that selling parts from captive bred tigers will prevent poaching, tiger conservation experts fear that lifting the ban may spell the end for tigers.

The fact is, it is expensive to raise a tiger in captivity, and poaching is much cheaper. If trade is legalized, then poached tiger parts can be laundered through legal channels, thus driving up demand and driving down wild tiger populations.

Rebecca Young, of Care2.com says "We can't let tigers be driven to extinction - please urge China to protect tigers by maintaining its successful ban on tiger trade!"

The goal is to get 30,000 or more signatures. At publication time, there were 27,663. Make your signature count:

Send your message here: http://go.care2.com/e/sbMd/Ktth/rad4