Reduced to skin and bones re-examined: an analysis of Tiger seizures from 13 range countries from 2000-2015
A new report from TRAFFIC and WWF finds no evidence of a decline in tiger trafficking across Asia, with parts equating to a minimum of 1755 tigers seized between 2000 and 2015 – an average of more than two animals per week. Published ahead of a critical debate on the illegal tiger trade at the world’s largest wildlife trade meeting underway in South Africa, Reduced to Skin and Bones Re-examined found there had been 801 recorded seizures of tigers and tiger products across Asia since 2000. With only an estimated 3,900 tigers left in the wild, evidence indicates that an increasing number of seized animals undoubtedly originate from captive breeding operations: at least 30 per cent of the tigers seized in the period 2012-2015 were known to be of captive-sourced tigers. While the largest number of overall seizures was reported by India, there is evidence that traffickers are still exploiting a previously identified trade route stretching from Thailand to Viet Nam through Laos — three countries where the number of tiger farms has risen.