Wild Tigers on the Rise

Conservation efforts are helping tigers

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Tigers are bouncing back! This Siberian tiger is roaming in a forest near Vladivostok, Russia.

For the first time since 1900, the world’s count of wild tigers is on the rise. Wildlife conservation groups said Monday that the number of wild tigers roaming the forests from Russia to Vietnam is 3,890. India alone holds more than half of the world’s tigers, with 2,226.

Many say this is a promising trend. The last worldwide estimate in 2010 had the number of tigers at an all-time low of 32,00, according to the World Wildlife Fund and the Global Tiger Forum.

Experts say the new number is good news, but they are cautious. Since the last census, there have been advances in technology for tracking tigers. It may be that experts are just aware of more tigers this time around. The number of actual tigers might not have changed.

JONAS GRATZER—LIGHTROCKET/GETTY IMAGES

Students in Sumatra, in Southeast Asia, track tigers by remote camera in 2013. Their work is part of an ongoing conservation effort .

Still, this is heartening news, according to Ginette Hemley, senior vice president of wildlife conservation at WWF. "More important than the absolute numbers is the trend, and we're seeing the trend going in the right direction," she said.

The Tiger’s Future

Tigers are still considered an endangered species. While the latest counts in Russia, India, Bhutan and Nepal all turned up more tigers, the numbers are still falling in Southeast Asia. Poaching is a huge problem in this part of the world, as well deforestation, which is shrinking the tiger’s habitat.

Since 2010, the governments of 13 countries have teamed up with conservationists. They are looking for ways to double the number of wild tigers by 2022. This high-level commitment makes all the difference, says Hemley. "When you have well protected habitat and you control the poaching, tigers will recover,” she says. “That's a pretty simple formula. We know it works."

What can people and kids do to help wild tigers even more?