In Thailand, scientists have confirmed the presence of a critical breeding population of Indochinese tigers. This tiger subspecies is one of the rarest big cats in the world, with only about 220 individuals estimated to survive in the wild. The researchers, led by scientists from Oxford University’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), used camera traps to estimate tiger density in their study area.
Two tiger cubs along a forest trail. Younger cubs accompany their mother, learning about the forest in which they live through sight and scent. Camera trap image courtesy of DNP/Panthera/Freeland.
Their camera traps photographed four tiger cubs from three litters, that this population of highly endangered cats is breeding. The study, which was published in Biological Conservation, was conducted in the Thap Lan-Pang Sida Tiger Conservation Landscape (TCL) of eastern Thailand’s Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex (DPKY). Global Conservation has been working in this UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2016 to stop poaching and logging, in collaboration with Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Thailand.
The study’s authors concluded that there are approximately 20 tigers living in the study area. Though the population is small, it is globally important; crucially, this is the only recent breeding record for Indochinese tigers throughout their range, which is now restricted to Thailand and Myanmar.
The global range of all tiger subspecies. The Indochinese tiger is now restricted to Thailand and Myanmar. Map courtesy WWF.
Conservationists note that these results are thanks to a ten-year program called the DPKY Tiger Recovery Project, and that tiger numbers may be on track to increase by 50% by 2026. This not only underscores the need for continued conservation efforts, but also provides a rare glimmer of hope for a species whose numbers have been declining precipitously for decades.
The tiger population density in the TCL is around one cat per 158 sq. kilometer (just under three times the size of Manhattan), a density lower than in other regions where tigers live. The reason might be two-fold. Firstly, rampant poaching has likely reduced the number of prey animals available to the tigers. Secondly, tigers and their prey may still be recovering from historical anthropogenic pressures, like communist insurgency in the 1970s, an influx of refugees and a rise in poaching in the 1970s and 1980s, and other sources of human habitation in these areas.
Lowland forest, which usually supports the highest tiger densities, has become scarce in Thailand; most of it has been logged or converted. As a result, only more mountainous areas like the DPKY are left, but these areas can only sustain tigers at lower densities. In fact, tigers once ranged across most of Asia but are now feared to be extinct in Cambodia, Vietnam, southern China, and much of Myanmar. A 2019 camera trap study also revealed that the last Laotian tigers had disappeared.
A trio of tigers, a mother and her two cubs, inspect a PantheraCam. Camera trap image courtesy of DNP/Freeland/Panthera.
Along with habitat loss, poaching is the greatest threat to the survival of tigers in the wild. Due to the illegal wildlife trade, wild tigers have declined from 100,000 a century ago to just 3,900 today, most of which are in India. In fact, more tigers now live in captivity in the U.S. (in zoos and as exotic pets) than in the wild.
Some 200 kilometers from the TCL, the Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary in western Thailand contains another breeding population and the largest known population (about 55 individuals) of the subspecies.
The scientists developed a method of accurately estimating the number of tigers in a given area by using computer simulations to determine the best camera trap placement on the landscape. They then placed camera traps in that array, identifying individual tigers by their stripe patterns, and used a common method called “capture-mark-recapture” to estimate tiger numbers. Their results suggest that using simulations can help improve the accuracy and efficiency of estimating tiger numbers in areas where the population density is low.
Global Conservation is working with WCS Thailand to repopulate tigers and other large wildlife in Thap Lan National Park. Thap Lan is Thailand’s second largest park and one of the last intact habitats for a suite of threatened and endangered species, including elephants, Asiatic bears, clouded leopards, hornbills, and over 800 other vertebrate species. Thap Lan is at the heart of the DPKY’s 595,700-hectare cluster of five contiguous national parks.
Global Conservation is working in Thap Lan National Park to stop poaching and illegal logging.
The results of this study indicate that tigers are remarkably resilient, despite ongoing poaching and illegal logging of valuable Siamese rosewood trees in Thap Lan. To combat these threats, GC’s multi-year deployment of Global Park Defense includes training for rangers on night patrolling, park protection systems, armed combat, and improving patrol effectiveness.
Former head of the DPKY Wildlife Research Station Dr. Supagit Vinitpornsawan said: "Efforts to improve anti-poaching patrols and law enforcement efforts are critical to providing a safe area for tigers to breed. Recent results of our monitoring indicate these efforts may be paying off."
In addition to offering encouraging progress resulting from our support of law enforcement in Thap Lan, this study establishes a baseline that will allow Global Conservation and our partners to gauge the success of our tiger conservation programs moving forward.
Thap Lan Park Rangers with contraband confiscated from poachers.
New Discovery of Second Tiger Population in Thailand Found in Thap Lan World Heritage Park
Ash, E., Hallam, C., Prawatsart, C., Kaszta, Z., Macdonald, D. W., Rojanachinda, W., … Harihar, A. (2020). Estimating the density of a globally important tiger (Panthera tigris) population: Using simulations to evaluate survey design in Eastern Thailand. Biological Conservation, 241, 108349. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108349.
Gray, T. N. E., Hughes, A. C., Laurance, W. F., Long, B., Lynam, A. J., O’Kelly, H., … Wilkinson, N. M. (2018). The wildlife snaring crisis: an insidious and pervasive threat to biodiversity in Southeast Asia. Biodiversity and Conservation, 27(4), 1031-1037. doi:10.1007/s10531-017-1450-5.
Duangchantrasiri, S., Umponjan, M., Simcharoen, S., Pattanavibool, A., Chaiwattana, S., Maneerat, S., … Karanth, K.U. (2016). Dynamics of a low‐density tiger population in Southeast Asia in the context of improved law enforcement. Conservation Biology, 30(3), 639-648. doi:10.1111/cobi.12655
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