Four Malayan tiger cubs spotted in wild renews conservation hopes

 

Images of a female Malayan tiger and her four cubs in the wild have renewed hopes of conservation for the critically endangered species.

WWF Malaysia said the images were captured by camera traps earlier this year.

"With the tiger population currently numbering fewer than 150 in Peninsular Malaysia, this latest development renews hope that this critically endangered species can be saved from the brink of extinction.

"It is all the more crucial that we continue our patrols, to protect these cubs and their mother from the existing threats of poaching and loss of habitat," WWF Malaysia executive director Sophia Lim said in a statement today.

Tigers give birth to two to four cubs every two years.

If all cubs in one litter die, a tiger can produce a second litter within five months if it finds a healthy mate and there are conducive conditions for breeding.

Tigers are under threat of poaching and loss of habitat from deforestation and forest fragmentation due to legal in-forest activities like plantations and mining.

Perak State Parks Corporation (PSPC) director Shah Redza Hussin said the cubs' presence is proof that tigers can still breed and thrive in the forests in Malaysia if protected.

The Department of Wildlife and National Parks of Peninsular Malaysia (Perhilitan), WWF-Malaysia and PSPC's Orang Asli Menraq Patrol Unit regularly patrol the Royal Belum State Park, a tiger habitat spanning 117,500 hectares.

"It's a collaborative effort. This sighting is proof that with a viable population - though small - tigers can still repopulate if their habitat, food and safety are ensured," he said.

WWF-Malaysia said patrolling had reduced poaching incidences by 98 percent.

The group also expects heavier penalties for crimes against wildlife will have a positive impact on conservation.

The amendment to the law, imposing a maximum fine of RM1 million, up from RM500,000, for offenders comes into force this month.

Patrolling only picked up around 2018

Earlier, conservationist Mark Rayan Darmaraj warned Malayan tigers could become extinct by this year if efforts to save them are not intensified.

He said there needs to be at least 2,500 to 5,000 rangers to patrol wildlife habitats in Peninsular Malaysia, and an increase in patrolling was only seen from 2018 onwards.

The conservationist told Al Jazeera in an interview in May that maintaining connectivity between forest complexes is also key to tiger survival.

He said conversion of tiger habitat to other land use fragments forests into smaller patches.

Tigers, however, have large home ranges, and without connectivity between the forests, their movements are limited.

This makes them more susceptible to local extinction due to diseases and reduces the chance of replenishing the population, he said.

Earlier, Malaysiakini reported the approval of rare earth mining in a forest corridor in Perak, which is marked as a habitat for endangered wildlife, including the Malayan Tiger.

The Department of Environment is currently reviewing an environmental impact assessment report submitted for gold mining in the tiger habitat in the Sokor Taku forest reserve in Kelantan. - Mkini