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RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - epaiva - 10-20-2017
Biomass contribution of large cervids to Tiger diets, sources: McDougal 1977 (Chitwan); Rabinowitz 1989 (Thailand); Karanth & Sunquist 1995 (Nagarahole); Michelle et al. 1996b (Russia). taken from the book Riding the Tiger (Tiger Conservation in human dominated landscapes) Edited by John Seidensticker, Sarah Christie and Peter Jackson) 1999
*This image is copyright of its original author
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - parvez - 10-25-2017
Interesting article regarding genetic diversity. Though slightly inbred these tigers from ranthambore are contributing to genetic diversity by migrating into longer areas and reproducing there.
Source:. http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0029827
*This image is copyright of its original author
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - parvez - 10-28-2017
Hope this is not posted before,
*This image is copyright of its original author
http://indiasendangered.com/sundarban-tigers-closely-related-to-tigers-from-central-india/
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - Wolverine - 10-30-2017
Peter, here is the Russian article:
https://todaykhv.ru/news/in-areas-of-the-province/8794//
MANIAC-BEAR PURSUES TIGRESS IN HABAROVSKII REGION
All this month a gigantic brown bear leaves without food a tigress with two cubs, residing in the territory of forest-hunting economic unit in the aria of Lazo.
The fact of pursuing is confirmed by photos from camera trap, installed on tiger's trail by the biologist and hunting expert, director of the forest-hunting economic unit "Durminskoe" Alexandr Batalov. One of the photos clearly shows a tigress and after 30 minutes on the scope of the camera trap appears bear following her traces.
"I observe that tigress already several years. Her name is "Rashel"" - told Aleksandr Sergeevitch to the journalist from Information Agency "Habarovskii Krai Segodnia". "Last year she gave birth to four cubs" ... etc. etc ... this passage is not so important .......
But the bear doesn't give the tigress the opportunity to finish her meal, and the tigress herself doesn't enter in confrontation with the bear because she is much smaller.
"The bear knowing that Rashel is a skilled hunter and has cubs follow her and wait until she kill something. And once the bear find the kill chase her away." - said Batalov - "And the bear doesn't eat fresh meat, he burry the meat underground, wait for some time around and than consumate it."
Normally the situations when tigers and bears meet each other on same trail and enter in confrontation with each other are result of the lack of food resources. Large brown bears during the fall must gain enough body weight before entering hibernation that's way they sometimes start behaving as carnivores - hunt week, sick animals or appropriate the food from obligatory carnivores .
........ etc ...etc. ...... explanation that sometimes brown bears hunt Asiatic black bears.........
But in this current season there is enough food in the forest for everybody. Its visible on the bear himself (meaning the bear is fat). Most probably the male bear just got used to "easy" life on the shoulders of the tigress.
The hunters from the forest unit could help tigress to get rid of the parasite (the bear), hunting season opens in October. Until now they are not succesfull in this task. They are going to follow the bear when the snow fall. "
That's the end of the article.
My comments. Its obvious that this particular bear is extremely large, a real giant - probably 1,5 times larger than average male Ussurian brown bear. Its easy to assess the size of the bear by comparing it with the size of the tigress since on the photos they stay close to same tree. The average weight of Siberian tigress is 120 kg, the average weight of Ussurian male brown bear is 260-270 kg. But the bear on photos obviously is from 3 to 3,5 times larger than the tigress, totally dwarfing her. That mean that the body mass of that giant should be I the range of 360-420 kg.
As I know that is the first photo-evidence of interactions between amur tiger and brown bear. All previous evidences are only written reports of scientists and hunters. The question is where is the video itself from that camera trap because we currently have only two photos from the video leaked into mass media?
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - peter - 10-31-2017
WOLVERINE
Many thanks for the link, the translation and the summary.
In the past years, Russian biologists more than once wrote that some large male bears deliberately follow and displace tigresses with cubs. The photographs and the article prove that they were right.
Satellite bears
Male brown bears following and displacing Amur tigresses with cubs, if correct, are known as 'satellite bears'. It seems that some of them do not hibernate. The most likely reason is they solved the food problem. At least, the tigresses they follow and displace did. And they will continue solving them as long as the pressure is kept up.
This means that the tigress targeted has to hunt for both her family and the hangman. As he often is at least twice, if not three times, her weight, the tigress has no option but to hunt large animals for an extended period of time. When she fails to deliver, chances are the male bear will target one of her cubs. Or all of them. If she protects her cubs, she could be severely wounded or killed. In both scenarios, her cubs could perish.
Encounters between 'satellite bears' and tigresses with cubs or young tigers
In Band III of 'Mammals of the Sovjet-Union' , a number of incidents between tigresses and 'satellite bears' were described:
" ... In a fight with a bear, the tiger isn't always victorious. In the 1959-1960 winter, a tigress with her two 2-year old cubs lived in a remote part of the Sichote-Alin Mountains. One day, she left them with a wild boar she had killed. When they were feeding, the tigress moved off. When she returned, she saw a large non-hibernating brown bear (also known as a 'Schatun') approaching the cubs and the wild boar. The tigress attacked the bear, but was killed in the fight that followed. In spite of his severe injuries, the 'Schatun' consumed both the wild boar and the tigress (Sysoev, 1960). In 1913, near the Great Sinantsch, a large brown bear killed a tiger. In 1960, in the Sichote-Alin Reserve, a young tiger was killed by a brown bear (V. Abramov, 1962). A similar incident happened in the Amur region (Krivopust, 1957) ... " ('Mammals of the Sovjet-Union', V.G. Heptner and A.A. Sludskij, German edition, Jena, 1980, pp. 150).
The first incident happened in winter, meaning the bear involved most probably was a non-hibernating bear or Schatun. As Schatuns and satellite-bears often are one and the same, it's possible that the bear had been following and displacing the tigress and her two cubs for some time. The last incident (referring to the incident quoted from Krivopusk) wasn't discussed by Heptner and Sludskij, but by V. Mazak:
" ... Kaplanov (1948) and Abramov (1962) agree that an adult brown bear can kill and eat young tigers left on their own by their mother. In 1956, in the Schuchti-Pokto Reserve near Chabarowsk, a 3-year old tiger was killed by a brown bear near the wild boar killed by his mother (Krivopusk 1957, ex Abramov 1962). Two similar incidents happened in the 1959-1960 winter and in the fall of 1960 when a tigress resp. a young tiger were killed by a brown bear (Abramov 1962, Heptner and Sludskij 1972) ... ('Der Tiger', V. Mazak, third edition, 1983, pp. 120).
This is a photograph of 2-year old Amur tiger killed and eaten by a brown bear (Mazak, 1983):
*This image is copyright of its original author
Based on these incidents and on recent observations of biologists, the conclusion is that tigresses with cubs are sometimes followed and displaced by large male brown bears. It's very likely that some of these bears also hunt young Amur tigers and tigresses in times of need (early spring and late autumn). More than one biologist wrote that male brown bears also hunt Himalayan black bears in this period of time.
Tigresses without cubs, on the other hand, can be dangerous for female brown bears. Kaplanov (in 'Der Tiger', V. Mazak, 1983, pp. 89), following a tigress in the Kolumbe River Basin, found the tigress had dug up and killed a female brown bear and her two cubs in February 1940. Similar cases have been described by V.K. Abramov ('Der Tiger', V. Mazak, 1983, pp. 89). Early May 1951, a bear with a body length of 158 cm. and about 170 kg. killed and eaten by an Amur tigress was found close to the Tatibe River ('Mammals of the Sovjet-Union', German edition, Jena, 1980, pp. 149).
This is the brown bear killed by a tigress near the Tatibe River in early May 1951 (Mazak, 1983). Mazak wrote it was an adult brown bear, but Bromley didn't provide any details about gender and age. Same for Heptner and Sludskij. Length and weight obviously were a result of an estimate, as a large part of the bear was eaten. If the bear really was about 170 kg. in early May, chances are he or she was 20-30% heavier just before hibernation. If so, it's likely it was an adolescent or young adult male (adult female brown bears average 140-150 kg.):
*This image is copyright of its original author
Although the last incident proves that a tigress can kill a larger brown bear, one wouldn't fancy her chances in a fight with a large satellite-bear two or three times her weight. In order to give you an idea about the difference in size:
Male brown bear from southeastern Russia. I have no details, but he seems to be average-sized -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Another well-built male -
*This image is copyright of its original author
This is a large male (about 400 kg.) from the San Diego Zoo -
*This image is copyright of its original author
A brown bear recently captured and weighed in the Russian Far East. As only two males of 180 and 235 kg. were captured, I assume this is one of them -
*This image is copyright of its original author
The table with the weights of two male brown bears captured in the Sichote-Alin Natural Reserve -
*This image is copyright of its original author
The male following and displacing tigress 'Rashel' is a very large individual, most probably close to 800 pounds. Although bears of this weight are uncommon, Ussuri brown bears (Ursus arctos lasiotus), as this photograph shows, can reach a great size -
*This image is copyright of its original author
For comparison. This is tigress 'Zolushka' with her 2 cubs. A stocky tigress:
*This image is copyright of its original author
Here's another Amur tigress (2008, with Putin). In contrast to 'Zolushka', she has a more 'classical' appearance:
*This image is copyright of its original author
In early spring (just after hibernation) and late autumn (just before hibernation), bears need a lot of energy as fast as possible. Protein is the way to get there, but hunting isn't easy for bears. Cats, on the other hand, are natural hunters. When bears and cats co-exist, brown bears in particular often visit tiger kills. It's near these kill sites that tiger and bear most often meet and clash.
There are just over 500 Amur tigers and many thousands of bears in the Russian Far East. Nearly all bears, young or old, visit tiger kills. For Amur tigers, avoiding bears just isn't an option. They have to learn how to deal with bears and it starts when they are born. Cubs are protected by their mother, but when they disperse, at 18 months or a bit over, they are on their own.
Although there is no information about the period between adolescence and adulthood, it's very likely that many Amur tigers don't make it to adulthood. Those that do are, bearwise, true survivors. Not a few of them have learned to hunt bears. Although many posters seem to think that only male tigers hunt bears, there's plenty of evidence of Amur tigresses hunting bears or training their cubs in this respect.
The story below, from November 2008, most probably is everyday reality for many Amur tigresses with cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Although an average captive Amur tigress is not much heavier than an average wild Amur tigress, some captive tigresses can exceed 160 kg. (353 pounds). One tigress shot because she had killed the owner of a (French) facility was just over 200 kg. (442 pounds). The heaviest wild Amur tigress I know of was 368 pounds (166,9 kg.), but it's likely that there were, or still are, heavier tigresses. The record tigress was shorter than average and also had a shortish skull.
Wild Amur tigresses today average about 120 kg. (265 pounds), maybe a bit more. The heaviest weighed in the last decades was below 130 kg. (287 pounds). The range in weight in wild Amur tigresses is quite limited, which is not typical for wild tigers. Could point towards a shortage of food or to a population bottleneck not too long ago. There have been several in the last century.
Sexual dimorphism in Amur tigers is outspoken. Captive males average about 215 kg. (474 pounds), but the range is remarkable. Small adult males are just over 160 kg. (353 pounds), whereas the heaviest top 300 kg. (662 pounds). Two decades ago, wild male Amur tigers averaged about 177 kg. (390 pounds). As the historic average for wild males was about 215 kg. (474 pounds), it means that male Amur tigers, largely as a result of bad conditions and low numbers, lost about 80 pounds in a century.
However. The sample resulting in 177 kg. a decade ago included a number of 'problem tigers' as well as a few 3-4 year old animals. Dale Miquelle thought that adult males today average about 430 pounds (195 kg.), but Guate's table suggested that 185-190 kg. (410-420 pounds) could be closer to the mark. I propose to use 190 kg. (420 pounds) for now. Compared to a century ago, this means they lost about 50 pounds. As prey depletion still is a problem, Amur tigers today probably hunt bears more often than they did a century ago.
As the conditions in Russia have improved, the number of tigers has risen. As more tigers and better conditions should result in more individual variation, one would expect a 500-pound male Amur tiger sooner or later. A decade ago, Kretzschmar said he had seen tracks of very large male tigers. Although the heaviest male to date is a young adult of 212 kg. (468 pounds), recent photographs suggest that Kretzschmar could be right. I have no information about this male, but he seems healthy and has a large skull. Surprise captured -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Tigress 'Rashel'
In the article you translated, you wrote that Alexander Sergeevitsch had observed the tigress targeted by the bear for some years. Last year, she had given birth to four cubs. I wonder if all of them survived, as it's likely the family faced periods of starvation. If tigress 'Rashel' can't find enough prey animals, chances are the bear will try to get to her cubs.
Nature should run its course, but the number of wild Amur tigers is limited and they are still poached (about 20 every year). As tigresses in particular are vital, I can understand the decision to ease the pressure on 'Rashel'.
Solving her problem, however, doesn't mean that the bear has to be taken out. If they can rehabilitate orphaned tigers, they should also be able to rehabilitate professional hangmen, one would think. Making little rocks out of big ones is a possibility, but why not use good old Pavlov?
Amur tigers and male brown bears
Male brown bears are large animals. In the Russian Far East, they average about 580 pounds (263,09 kg.), but large individuals can reach 800 pounds (362,88 kg.). and quite a bit more at times. In order to hibernate, these giants need to fatten up severely in autumn. Protein would be best, but male brown bears are too heavy to hunt. In the Russian Far East, however, they use Amur tigers to get to protein.
Although it's likely that a large male brown bear can displace any tiger, male Amur tigers apparently are not that often displaced. According to Kretzschmar, a well-known Russian hunter and biologist, an average male Amur tiger (410-420 pounds) and an average male brown bear (580-590 pounds) more or less compare in a fight, but tigresses with cubs, adolescents and young adults can be intimidated and displaced. My guess is that most Amur tigers killed in fights with brown bears are large cubs, adolescents and young adults. The details I could find more or less confirm this conclusion.
Fights between brown bears and Amur tigers often happen close to kill sites. About half of them have a tragic outcome. Bears apparently initiate more fights, but tigers win most. During a debate on another forum some years ago bear posters agreed, but added that most bears killed were youngish individuals. Could be true, but the information needed to get to a conclusion often isn't there.
Rehabilitated Amur tigers released into the wild have collars, allowing researchers to track them. This is why they were able to find their kills. And the two bears killed by 'Boris'. The bears were youngish (2-4 years of age), but so was Boris when he fought them. This means that serious fights between immature tigers and bears apparently are not uncommon.
In an article I read back then, a biologist wrote that he knew of 12 Amur tigers killed by brown bears. I did a bit of research some years ago and concluded that the real number of casualties is much higher. I'm not saying that the Russian Far East is a hidden battlefield, but it's very likely that the number of serious encounters between Amur tigers and brown bears far exceeds the estimates I saw.
A recent article on Amur tigers and brown bears strongly suggests that Amur tigers hunt bears more often than was assumed. In some regions and seasons (and summer in particular), bears are as important as wild boars and red deer. Some years ago, researchers wrote that largish bears would be too dangerous for Amur tigers, but Miquelle now thinks this assumption could have been incorrect.
Kamsjatka
In Kamsjatka, not that far away, some male brown bears hunt cubs up to 4 years of age in spring and summer. Charly Russell and his wife Maureen ('Grizzly Heart', Random House, 2002) lost one of the three orphaned cubs they rehabilitated to a cannabalistic male. He nearly got another one during a long chase (about 8 km.) partly witnessed by Russell. This male had killed two of the three cubs of a wild female before he attacked the Russell cubs.
A photograph of the cub-killer -
*This image is copyright of its original author
A large male brown bear from Kamsjatka -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Updates on 'Rashel' and her cubs
As the article triggered the interest of many, we would be very interested in a follow-up on Rashel, her four cubs and the bear. Maybe you can find a bit more?
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - Rishi - 10-31-2017
"Coexistence holds key to saving tigers":global workshop on tigers vows ‘win-win’ solutions
Experts at the global conference of Indian Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) involving Maharashtra Forest Department (MFD) on Saturday hoped to increase tiger numbers by taking to environmentally sustainable and conservation-friendly land use that also balances the needs of local communities, after marathon discussions through round table meetings between experts, grantees and donors that ended on 31st October, 2017.
The 4-day meet 'IUCN Tiger Programme Grantees workshop' was inaugurated in the Pench Tiger Reserve (Maharshtra) by forest minister Sudhir Mungantiwar at Sillari in the presence of 79 participants including top state forest officials and NGOs, individual experts and donors from India, South East Asian countries, the US, UK and Europe.
The workshop is basically organized to review the outcome of the Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Programme (ITHCP) being implemented through 11 projects in 5 countries.
In India, the ITHCP is also being implemented in entire Vidarbha landscape by the FD through NGOs three months ago and it would be too early to evaluate the performance.
"We have now extended this scheme in tiger corridors. Crop depredation cases have come down from 41,737 in 2015 to 23,959 in 2016."
The forest officials attending the workshop were more into sharing ideas on tiger monitoring with foreign counterparts and NGOs instead of IUCN funds.
They felt when it came to funds, state's Jan Van Yojana was better version of IUCN. Take for example Navegaon-Nagzira Tiger Reserve (NNTR), where in last two years, Rs24 crore were granted for communities in 97 villages around the reserve.
"We had to accept the IUCN scheme as it came before state's Jan Van Yojana was announced," they said.
They shared experiences and came up with solutions as to what works and what not and any surprises during working.
Sugoto Roy is coordinator of Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Programme (ITHCP) being run through 11 projects in 5 tiger bearing countries. Roy is in Sillari (Pench) for a 4-day global workshop to review various projects including Vidarbha landscape where ITHCP is being implemented. He specializes in the ecology and management of carnivores, invasive species and human-wildlife conflicts.
He was interviewed by a top Indian journalist:
Q: What is ITCHP all about?
A: The main aim of the program is an improved conservation of selected tiger populations and their habitat that also incentivizes local community support and participation in tiger conservation through the creation of tangible livelihood benefits.
Q: Despite several separate initiatives, why man-animal conflict is not going down?
A: It will never go down because as tiger numbers are increasing owing to better conservation steps, human population is also growing leading to habitat degradation by humans, and fragmentation through development of infrastructure such as roads and highways. The majority of remaining tiger populations are isolated, unconnected to other populations and face increasing encroachment by human settlements.
Q: So what is the solution?
A: Humans coexistence with tigers holds key. The conservation of tigers involves management of problems at a number of levels. Successful conservation programmes will therefore need to be multi-disciplinary, covering areas existing tiger populations through anti-poaching measures, conflict mitigation and habitat conservation. Coupled with there is need to improve livelihoods of communities living in and around tiger habitats so that forest resource use is sustainable and alternative livelihoods can be developed. Many of our initiatives are a result of Global Tiger Recovery Programme (GTRP).
Q: Yet, why results are not forthcoming?
A: There are no short-term results in tiger conservation. You cannot win by working randomly. All NGOs need to work coordinately.
Q: Electrocution is bigger threat than poaching?
A: You are talking about Central India landscape, but I won't comment on this. Different countries have different laws in this regard. We work basically to share knowledge globally, and hence cannot focus on small details.
Q: How will IUCN project help?
A: I'm confident that it will bear results. If need is felt, we may extend the project beyond 2018. To bear fruits we will enhance tiger conservation-related infrastructure, procurement of vehicles, telecommunication equipment, IT, etc capacity building through technical training of front line staff, reduce livestock grazing in tiger habitats. Besides, we will reduce livestock predation through appropriate husbandry and provide economic incentives to locals for conserving tigers and habitat; diversify and strengthen livelihoods and income generation activities — including those based directly on tiger conservation.
Q: Do you think IUCN project should be integrated with state schemes?
A: I don't disagree with it as India is doing very well in tiger conservation.
Q: Why only tiger is the focus?
Q: Why only tiger is the focus?
A: Tiger is an indicator species. If you save tigers, other species will automatically benefit. But I feel research should focus on multiple species.
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - peter - 10-31-2017
THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
A - The tigress
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs. Wolverine (next post) says she had 4 cubs last year. Two of these already dispersed, meaning they left their mother well before reaching their second year. This underlines the conclusion of L. Kerley on the dispersal of young Amur tigers (her article was discussed some time ago).
This means that two large cubs still depend on 'Rashel'. At their age (between 18-22 months or so), chances are they could decide to interact with the large male bear taking their kills soon. Considering the size of the bear, this could be costly.
As information about her size is lacking, we have to assume she could be about average in weight (110-130 kg.) :
*This image is copyright of its original author
B - The male brown bear
And this is the male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her whenever possible. He is taking his job very seriously, as his photograph was taken about 30 minutes after 'Rashel' passed the same spot.
The bear, as you can see, is a very large animal. He's a bit longer, much taller and much more robust than the tigress. If tigress 'Rashel' is about 120 kg. (265 pounds), the bear could be about three times her weight (close to 800 pounds).
In order to get to that size and stay there, a bear needs a lot of energy. As protein is much more productive than carrots, a large bear needs to eat fish or meat at regular intervals. Fish is no problem, but the season is too short to get big. That leaves meat. A large bear can get lucky, but hunting isn't easy for an animal as large as a male brown bear. This means they have to find another way to get to meat. And that's where tigers come in.
Following an Amur tiger in order to feed on his kill when the opportunity presents itself is not a problem for an animal with a great nose. The problem for all scavengers is moving out in time. As Amur tigers invest a lot of time and energy in hunting, they take theft very serious. As bears are even more obsessive regarding food, clashes near kill sites are quite common. Not a few of them develop into a serious fight. About half of these have a fatal outcome.
Based on what I read some years ago, bears seem to initiate more fights. Tigers, however, win more. As tigers usually eat what they kill, not a few a them develop a taste for bear. As there are many thousands of bears in the Russian Far East, hunting them is not that difficult. The problem is in selection. Tigers try to kill large animals whenever possible, as this is the most efficient way to use energy.
When a tiger develops in the bear department, chances are he or she (tigresses hunt bears as well) will try to move from small bears to large bears. Most bears killed are small to medium-sized animals, but adult female brown bears are hunted as well. For quite some time, biologists thought that Amur tigers didn't hunt large bears because of the risks involved. Recent research, however, indicates that they could be wrong.
When a tiger and a bear engage, a tiger can leave when the fight isn't going his way. This is not true for a bear. Advantage tiger, that is. In spite of that, tigers have been killed by brown bears. Doesn't happen often, but it happens and my guess is it happens every year. More than once, I think.
Brown bears, like tigers, usually eat what they kill. A bear that won a fight with a tiger will try his chances again. My guess is that a fight isn't the object of a large male bear. Bears are very intelligent animals. Adult males know that displacing a tiger is far more productive in the long run.
The big male bear following tigress 'Rashel' most probably is very experienced regarding tigers, as he selected an adult female with cubs. Tigresses with cubs often use a relatively small area. This means that she can't avoid a bear out for food. It also means she can't risk a fight. A male bear who selected a tigress with cubs can profit for quite some time.
Most bears following a tigress do so in lean periods or lean years. This year, however, seems to be very productive in all respects. This means that the bear following the tigress isn't suffering from a shortage of food. It means he is living a very easy life at the expense of 'Rashel'. My guess is the rangers want to take him out because he has become a professional in this respect. At his size, he would be a great trophy.
I hope they reconsider his case. If it's possible to rehabilitate a tiger, it should be possible to rehabilitate a brown bear. My guess is Pavlov should do it.
Have a good look at this giant, as he is as large as they come :
*This image is copyright of its original author
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - Wolverine - 11-01-2017
(10-31-2017, 11:07 PM)peter Wrote: THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
And this is a very large male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her when she killed for her cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Peter, knowing that the average weight of female Amur tigress is 120 kg, and if we guess that Rashel is a an average female what is your assessment about the body weight of the big guy?
Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
For now what we know about Rashel is that she got her name from one lady, a foreign tourist visited the aria. That's lady name was also "Rashel".
Also we know that "last year she had four cubs. Despite the fact that her cubs are already not small and two of them are already separated from the tigress this good mother still help to another two cubs with feeding. They doesn't go too far away from the mother and approach imidiately when she call them".
That's only information till now about Rashel.
To follow the fate and live of Amur tiger is much harder than doing the same with tigers in India. Russian Ussuriland is vast wilderness, scarcely populated, there are almost no roads and trails there, tiger's territories are 20 times larger than territory of tropical tigers. Some arias outside national parks and reserves could be dangerous for lonely biologist to enter not only because of harsh climate, remoteness and big carnivores but because there hide some outlawed criminals, lonely people with guns and weird suspisiuos mind called "shatuns". In general, Ussuriland is not a joke, its a very severe, harsh land. In same time its a unique, grandiouse ecosystem.
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - sanjay - 11-01-2017
(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote: Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
Uploading images from your computer/laptop/device
https://wildfact.com/forum/topic-how-to-upload-image
Inserting images from other websites
https://wildfact.com/forum/topic-how-to-insert-image-in-text-editor-on-this-forum
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - peter - 11-02-2017
(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(10-31-2017, 11:07 PM)peter Wrote: THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
And this is a very large male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her when she killed for her cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Peter, knowing that the average weight of female Amur tigress is 120 kg, and if we guess that Rashel is a an average female what is your assessment about the body weight of the big guy?
Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
For now what we know about Rashel is that she got her name from one lady, a foreign tourist visited the aria. That's lady name was also "Rashel".
Also we know that "last year she had four cubs. Despite the fact that her cubs are already not small and two of them are already separated from the tigress this good mother still help to another two cubs with feeding. They doesn't go too far away from the mother and approach imidiately when she call them".
That's only information till now about Rashel.
To follow the fate and live of Amur tiger is much harder than doing the same with tigers in India. Russian Ussuriland is vast wilderness, scarcely populated, there are almost no roads and trails there, tiger's territories are 20 times larger than territory of tropical tigers. Some arias outside national parks and reserves could be dangerous for lonely biologist to enter not only because of harsh climate, remoteness and big carnivores but because there hide some outlawed criminals, lonely people with guns and weird suspisiuos mind called "shatuns". In general, Ussuriland is not a joke, its a very severe, harsh land. In same time its a unique, grandiouse ecosystem.
According to reliable sources, an average adult male brown bear in the Russian Far East (Ursus arctos lasiotus) is 260-270 kg. (574-596 pounds). A large male easily exceeds 300 kg. (662 pounds). The male on the photograph seems to be of exceptional size. My guess is he could be close to 800 pounds (362,88 kg.).
As to Ussuriland. I agree it's a unique, vast and very wild region with few people. I know a bit about remote regions and people who live there. Not a few of them prefer isolation for good reasons. Those who like to be on their own often live by their own rules. In a way, they compare to the large carnivores also making their home in the forests.
Well over a century ago, Baikov wrote about the rules of the taiga. Not murder, but theft was considered the worst crime. Offenders were buried alive or tied to trees for tigers. No wonder man-eaters were not uncommon in Manchuria and the northern part of Korea back then.
Tough country, tough people. And tough measures for those who broke rules. But it had no effect. Dersu was killed by people out for his skins and so were many others. Lev Kaplanov, a great biologist who rang the bell for Amur tigers, died well before his time. They think poachers could have been involved, but nobody was ever arrested.
In Russia, conservation is taken very seriously. In spite of the focus of politicians on conservation, the measures taken and the quality of the rangers, about 20 Amur tigers are poached every year. Those who kill for skins also often poach. Although the laws regarding poaching often prove to be inadequate, rangers take their job seriously. Many have been arrested and quite many incidents of poaching reach the press. As a result, rangers have to watch their back all the time. Same for a biologist entering unknown territory on his own.
In spite of all that, I would like to visit Ussuriland. I know tourism is being developed, but I don't care that much about tours. My aim is good information about Ussuriland and the large carnivores it has. I want to meet people in the know. Specialists. Another goal is to measure skulls in the natural history museums of Chabarowsk and Vladivostok. I want to talk to people who can open a few doors. If you have ideas, please let me know.
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - epaiva - 11-02-2017
(11-02-2017, 01:31 PM)peter Wrote:(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(10-31-2017, 11:07 PM)peter Wrote: THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
And this is a very large male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her when she killed for her cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Peter, knowing that the average weight of female Amur tigress is 120 kg, and if we guess that Rashel is a an average female what is your assessment about the body weight of the big guy?
Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
For now what we know about Rashel is that she got her name from one lady, a foreign tourist visited the aria. That's lady name was also "Rashel".
Also we know that "last year she had four cubs. Despite the fact that her cubs are already not small and two of them are already separated from the tigress this good mother still help to another two cubs with feeding. They doesn't go too far away from the mother and approach imidiately when she call them".
That's only information till now about Rashel.
To follow the fate and live of Amur tiger is much harder than doing the same with tigers in India. Russian Ussuriland is vast wilderness, scarcely populated, there are almost no roads and trails there, tiger's territories are 20 times larger than territory of tropical tigers. Some arias outside national parks and reserves could be dangerous for lonely biologist to enter not only because of harsh climate, remoteness and big carnivores but because there hide some outlawed criminals, lonely people with guns and weird suspisiuos mind called "shatuns". In general, Ussuriland is not a joke, its a very severe, harsh land. In same time its a unique, grandiouse ecosystem.
According to reliable sources, an average adult male brown bear in the Russian Far East (Ursus arctos lasiotus) is 260-270 kg. (574-596 pounds). A large male easily exceeds 300 kg. (662 pounds). The male on the photograph seems to be of exceptional size. My guess is he could be close to 800 pounds (362,88 kg.).
As to Ussuriland. I agree it's a unique, vast and very wild region with few people. I know a bit about remote regions and people who live there. Not a few of them prefer isolation for good reasons. Those who like to be on their own often live by their own rules. In a way, they compare to the large carnivores also making their home in the forests. My guess is Amur tigers know about their neighbours. And the other way round.
Well over a century ago, Baikov wrote about the rules of the taiga. Not murder, but theft was considered the worst crime. Offenders were buried alive or tied to trees for tigers. No wonder man-eaters were not uncommon in Manchuria and the northern part of Korea back then.
Tough country, tough people. And tough measures for those who broke rules. But it had no effect. Dersu was killed by people out for his skins and so were many others. Lev Kaplanov, a great biologist who rang the bell for Amur tigers, died well before his time. They think poachers could have been involved, but nobody was ever arrested.
In Russia, conservation is taken very seriously. In spite of the measures taken and the quality of the rangers, about 20 Amur tigers are poached every year. Those who kill for skins also often poach. Although the laws regarding poaching often prove to be inadequate, rangers take their job seriously. As a result, they have to watch their back all the time. Same for a biologist entering unknown territory on his own.
In spite of all that, I would like to visit Ussuriland. I know tourism is being developed, but I don't care that much about tours. My aim is good information about Ussuriland and the large carnivores it has. I need to talk to people in the know. Specialists. Another goal is to measure skulls in the natural history museums of Chabrowsk and Vladivostok. I want to talk to people who can open a few doors. If you have ideas, please let me know.
@peter @Wolverine
Thanks a lot for your valuable pictures and information, thanks to you we are all learning more about this two incredible animals. Peter hope you can go there and find a lot more information about Siberian Tigers and Browm Bears.
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - Wolverine - 11-03-2017
(11-02-2017, 01:31 PM)peter Wrote:(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(10-31-2017, 11:07 PM)peter Wrote: THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
And this is a very large male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her when she killed for her cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Peter, knowing that the average weight of female Amur tigress is 120 kg, and if we guess that Rashel is a an average female what is your assessment about the body weight of the big guy?
Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
For now what we know about Rashel is that she got her name from one lady, a foreign tourist visited the aria. That's lady name was also "Rashel".
Also we know that "last year she had four cubs. Despite the fact that her cubs are already not small and two of them are already separated from the tigress this good mother still help to another two cubs with feeding. They doesn't go too far away from the mother and approach imidiately when she call them".
That's only information till now about Rashel.
To follow the fate and live of Amur tiger is much harder than doing the same with tigers in India. Russian Ussuriland is vast wilderness, scarcely populated, there are almost no roads and trails there, tiger's territories are 20 times larger than territory of tropical tigers. Some arias outside national parks and reserves could be dangerous for lonely biologist to enter not only because of harsh climate, remoteness and big carnivores but because there hide some outlawed criminals, lonely people with guns and weird suspisiuos mind called "shatuns". In general, Ussuriland is not a joke, its a very severe, harsh land. In same time its a unique, grandiouse ecosystem.
According to reliable sources, an average adult male brown bear in the Russian Far East (Ursus arctos lasiotus) is 260-270 kg. (574-596 pounds). A large male easily exceeds 300 kg. (662 pounds). The male on the photograph seems to be of exceptional size. My guess is he could be close to 800 pounds (362,88 kg.).
As to Ussuriland. I agree it's a unique, vast and very wild region with few people. I know a bit about remote regions and people who live there. Not a few of them prefer isolation for good reasons. Those who like to be on their own often live by their own rules. In a way, they compare to the large carnivores also making their home in the forests.
Well over a century ago, Baikov wrote about the rules of the taiga. Not murder, but theft was considered the worst crime. Offenders were buried alive or tied to trees for tigers. No wonder man-eaters were not uncommon in Manchuria and the northern part of Korea back then.
Tough country, tough people. And tough measures for those who broke rules. But it had no effect. Dersu was killed by people out for his skins and so were many others. Lev Kaplanov, a great biologist who rang the bell for Amur tigers, died well before his time. They think poachers could have been involved, but nobody was ever arrested.
In Russia, conservation is taken very seriously. In spite of the focus of politicians on conservation, the measures taken and the quality of the rangers, about 20 Amur tigers are poached every year. Those who kill for skins also often poach. Although the laws regarding poaching often prove to be inadequate, rangers take their job seriously. Many have been arrested and quite many incidents of poaching reach the press. As a result, rangers have to watch their back all the time. Same for a biologist entering unknown territory on his own.
In spite of all that, I would like to visit Ussuriland. I know tourism is being developed, but I don't care that much about tours. My aim is good information about Ussuriland and the large carnivores it has. I want to meet people in the know. Specialists. Another goal is to measure skulls in the natural history museums of Chabarowsk and Vladivostok. I want to talk to people who can open a few doors. If you have ideas, please let me know.
USSURI FOREST
I think the mane reason for the uniqueness of Ussuri forest is the amasing, almost unthinkable combination of Northern and tropical species of plants and animals. Summer time Ussuriland looks like Amazon or Indian tropical forest, humid, rainy and fogy, with tigers and leopards roaming among the lush vegetation where the grass rich 3 meters high. Winter time - opposite - Ussuri forest transform to sub-arctic landscape, bloody cold, snowy with temperatures falling to bellow -45 C it start looking like Yukon or Alaska. I arrived to conclusion that the main cause for this rapid differences between seasons is the vertical North-South circulation of air masses, cyclons and anti-cyclons during the different seasons which is quite rear phenomenon in the planet. During the winter the winds are blowing directly from the Northern Siberia and sea of Okhotsk - this "refrigerator" of all Eastern Asia (as Hudson Bay is the refrigerator of North America), during the summer the winds turn South - directly from the equatorial and tropical arias of Pacific close to Philipins bringing monsoons.
Other reason for the amasing richness of Ussuri forest is the fact that this aria has never been covered by glaciers, even during the last Ice Age because the winds from Siberia winter time were so dry and winter precipitation so small that they almost didn't create snow cover.
Concerning number of large carnivores I think Ussuri forest can rival Africa and even India:
tiger, leopard (very rear), brown bear, Asiatic black bear, grey wolf, Indian wild dog (extinct), lynx, wolverine.
Peter, unfortunately I can't help you with any practical links or connections in Vladivostok or Habarovsk, personally I have Bulgarian origins. But knowing the language and mentality of Russian people and reading a lot of information from Russian sources about this region I could give you some advices. If you visit the aria try to dress and look like a local Russian, don't show visibly that you are Westerner, better use second hand dresses and try not to attract too much attention to yourself. Best season is early Autumn - September and October. I think you have 3 options:
1. You can visit one of "zapovedniks" (reservs) like "Lazovskij" or Sihote-Alinskij" zapovednik if somebody of the local scientists invite you as a scientist, they will show you everything. This is the best option, completely safe.
2. You can visit one of the national parks as "Zov Tigra" or "The Land of the leopard" close to the Vladivostok, the national parks unlike zapovedniks are open for tourists and accessible for everybody. I red that they have various trails each 10 to 15 kilometers long where you can walk and hike . The national parks in Ussuriland are completely safe for foreigners, already they attract foreign tourists, mainly from USA, Canada and Scandinavian countries. Tourism could help for protecting local nature but Ussuriland is so far from Europe and North America that could never attract massive safari tourism like Africa or Alaska, probably only Japaneese and Korean groups.
3. Third options is if you decide to visit more remote places outside protected arias, for example the monumental endless virgin forests of Bikin valley. In this case you accept significant risk. Nobody enter deep in the Ussuri forest without personal gun. You can easy be lost, frozen and worst of all - you can run into poacher or poachers (majority of local hunters are poachers as well) and if they decide that you are spying them you are in deadly danger. Also in some arias could hide escaped prisoners. If you want to visit Bikin valley you need to have close friend or friends in the aria to protect you. In this forests Russian state laws almost do not apply, the laws are made by forest guys. Outside national parks and "zapovedniks" only the tigers are so so relatively safe from people with guns because they have protection of the Big Boss in Kremlin, His long hand rich even this remote arias... But even they are not completely safe. You can rent a truck 4x4 from Vladivostok.
I also have a dream to visit Ussuri forest from early childhood but always delay the trip due to family and financial reasons....
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - Wolverine - 11-03-2017
(11-01-2017, 09:35 AM)sanjay Wrote:Unfortunately I am a complete idiot with computers and cant follow theoretical instructions unless somebody show me personally in the room how to do this... waiting my son to turn 15 and to show me...(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote: Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
Uploading images from your computer/laptop/device
https://wildfact.com/forum/topic-how-to-upload-image
Inserting images from other websites
https://wildfact.com/forum/topic-how-to-insert-image-in-text-editor-on-this-forum
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - Wolverine - 11-03-2017
(11-02-2017, 01:31 PM)peter Wrote:(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(10-31-2017, 11:07 PM)peter Wrote: THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
And this is a very large male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her when she killed for her cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Peter, knowing that the average weight of female Amur tigress is 120 kg, and if we guess that Rashel is a an average female what is your assessment about the body weight of the big guy?
Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
For now what we know about Rashel is that she got her name from one lady, a foreign tourist visited the aria. That's lady name was also "Rashel".
Also we know that "last year she had four cubs. Despite the fact that her cubs are already not small and two of them are already separated from the tigress this good mother still help to another two cubs with feeding. They doesn't go too far away from the mother and approach imidiately when she call them".
That's only information till now about Rashel.
To follow the fate and live of Amur tiger is much harder than doing the same with tigers in India. Russian Ussuriland is vast wilderness, scarcely populated, there are almost no roads and trails there, tiger's territories are 20 times larger than territory of tropical tigers. Some arias outside national parks and reserves could be dangerous for lonely biologist to enter not only because of harsh climate, remoteness and big carnivores but because there hide some outlawed criminals, lonely people with guns and weird suspisiuos mind called "shatuns". In general, Ussuriland is not a joke, its a very severe, harsh land. In same time its a unique, grandiouse ecosystem.
According to reliable sources, an average adult male brown bear in the Russian Far East (Ursus arctos lasiotus) is 260-270 kg. (574-596 pounds). A large male easily exceeds 300 kg. (662 pounds). The male on the photograph seems to be of exceptional size. My guess is he could be close to 800 pounds (362,88 kg.).
As to Ussuriland. I agree it's a unique, vast and very wild region with few people. I know a bit about remote regions and people who live there. Not a few of them prefer isolation for good reasons. Those who like to be on their own often live by their own rules. In a way, they compare to the large carnivores also making their home in the forests.
Well over a century ago, Baikov wrote about the rules of the taiga. Not murder, but theft was considered the worst crime. Offenders were buried alive or tied to trees for tigers. No wonder man-eaters were not uncommon in Manchuria and the northern part of Korea back then.
Tough country, tough people. And tough measures for those who broke rules. But it had no effect. Dersu was killed by people out for his skins and so were many others. Lev Kaplanov, a great biologist who rang the bell for Amur tigers, died well before his time. They think poachers could have been involved, but nobody was ever arrested.
In Russia, conservation is taken very seriously. In spite of the focus of politicians on conservation, the measures taken and the quality of the rangers, about 20 Amur tigers are poached every year. Those who kill for skins also often poach. Although the laws regarding poaching often prove to be inadequate, rangers take their job seriously. Many have been arrested and quite many incidents of poaching reach the press. As a result, rangers have to watch their back all the time. Same for a biologist entering unknown territory on his own.
In spite of all that, I would like to visit Ussuriland. I know tourism is being developed, but I don't care that much about tours. My aim is good information about Ussuriland and the large carnivores it has. I want to meet people in the know. Specialists. Another goal is to measure skulls in the natural history museums of Chabarowsk and Vladivostok. I want to talk to people who can open a few doors. If you have ideas, please let me know.
Peter, one more comparison. You are from Holland. From where are coming the rains in Holland during the summer - from Atlantic ocean, which is situated on same latitude as your country. But now imagine that the summer rains come in Holland not from Atlantic but from Indian ocean. Then they will bring extremely hot and humid air, Holland will turn into a lush subtropical forest. September come and the air flow from the South suddenly stops. With the beginning of winter the direction of air flow change 180 degrees and in Holland rush arctic air from North poll and Greenland bringing freezingly cold and extremely dry weather. Holland turns to un Ice Age landscape.... That's what basically we have in Ussuriland - the kingdom of the Great Nordic Tiger. That creates the most WEIRD ecosystem in the planet, it could be called "subtropical-subarctic forest". One Canadian scientist called it "boreal jungle". The symbol of this ecosystem is a pine tree wrapped by liana or kiwi.
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris) - peter - 11-07-2017
(11-03-2017, 10:30 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(11-02-2017, 01:31 PM)peter Wrote:(11-01-2017, 06:55 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(10-31-2017, 11:07 PM)peter Wrote: THE ACTORS FROM THE ARTICLE IN POST 1,308
This is Amur tigress 'Rashel', a mother of four cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
And this is a very large male brown bear following 'Rashel' and displacing her when she killed for her cubs -
*This image is copyright of its original author
Peter, knowing that the average weight of female Amur tigress is 120 kg, and if we guess that Rashel is a an average female what is your assessment about the body weight of the big guy?
Thank you for posting this images because I don't have computer skills to load images in the forum.
For now what we know about Rashel is that she got her name from one lady, a foreign tourist visited the aria. That's lady name was also "Rashel".
Also we know that "last year she had four cubs. Despite the fact that her cubs are already not small and two of them are already separated from the tigress this good mother still help to another two cubs with feeding. They doesn't go too far away from the mother and approach imidiately when she call them".
That's only information till now about Rashel.
To follow the fate and live of Amur tiger is much harder than doing the same with tigers in India. Russian Ussuriland is vast wilderness, scarcely populated, there are almost no roads and trails there, tiger's territories are 20 times larger than territory of tropical tigers. Some arias outside national parks and reserves could be dangerous for lonely biologist to enter not only because of harsh climate, remoteness and big carnivores but because there hide some outlawed criminals, lonely people with guns and weird suspisiuos mind called "shatuns". In general, Ussuriland is not a joke, its a very severe, harsh land. In same time its a unique, grandiouse ecosystem.
According to reliable sources, an average adult male brown bear in the Russian Far East (Ursus arctos lasiotus) is 260-270 kg. (574-596 pounds). A large male easily exceeds 300 kg. (662 pounds). The male on the photograph seems to be of exceptional size. My guess is he could be close to 800 pounds (362,88 kg.).
As to Ussuriland. I agree it's a unique, vast and very wild region with few people. I know a bit about remote regions and people who live there. Not a few of them prefer isolation for good reasons. Those who like to be on their own often live by their own rules. In a way, they compare to the large carnivores also making their home in the forests.
Well over a century ago, Baikov wrote about the rules of the taiga. Not murder, but theft was considered the worst crime. Offenders were buried alive or tied to trees for tigers. No wonder man-eaters were not uncommon in Manchuria and the northern part of Korea back then.
Tough country, tough people. And tough measures for those who broke rules. But it had no effect. Dersu was killed by people out for his skins and so were many others. Lev Kaplanov, a great biologist who rang the bell for Amur tigers, died well before his time. They think poachers could have been involved, but nobody was ever arrested.
In Russia, conservation is taken very seriously. In spite of the focus of politicians on conservation, the measures taken and the quality of the rangers, about 20 Amur tigers are poached every year. Those who kill for skins also often poach. Although the laws regarding poaching often prove to be inadequate, rangers take their job seriously. Many have been arrested and quite many incidents of poaching reach the press. As a result, rangers have to watch their back all the time. Same for a biologist entering unknown territory on his own.
In spite of all that, I would like to visit Ussuriland. I know tourism is being developed, but I don't care that much about tours. My aim is good information about Ussuriland and the large carnivores it has. I want to meet people in the know. Specialists. Another goal is to measure skulls in the natural history museums of Chabarowsk and Vladivostok. I want to talk to people who can open a few doors. If you have ideas, please let me know.
USSURI FOREST
I think the mane reason for the uniqueness of Ussuri forest is the amasing, almost unthinkable combination of Northern and tropical species of plants and animals. Summer time Ussuriland looks like Amazon or Indian tropical forest, humid, rainy and fogy, with tigers and leopards roaming among the lush vegetation where the grass rich 3 meters high. Winter time - opposite - Ussuri forest transform to sub-arctic landscape, bloody cold, snowy with temperatures falling to bellow -45 C it start looking like Yukon or Alaska. I arrived to conclusion that the main cause for this rapid differences between seasons is the vertical North-South circulation of air masses, cyclons and anti-cyclons during the different seasons which is quite rear phenomenon in the planet. During the winter the winds are blowing directly from the Northern Siberia and sea of Okhotsk - this "refrigerator" of all Eastern Asia (as Hudson Bay is the refrigerator of North America), during the summer the winds turn South - directly from the equatorial and tropical arias of Pacific close to Philipins bringing monsoons.
Other reason for the amasing richness of Ussuri forest is the fact that this aria has never been covered by glaciers, even during the last Ice Age because the winds from Siberia winter time were so dry and winter precipitation so small that they almost didn't create snow cover.
Concerning number of large carnivores I think Ussuri forest can rival Africa and even India:
tiger, leopard (very rear), brown bear, Asiatic black bear, grey wolf, Indian wild dog (extinct), lynx, wolverine.
Peter, unfortunately I can't help you with any practical links or connections in Vladivostok or Habarovsk, personally I have Bulgarian origins. But knowing the language and mentality of Russian people and reading a lot of information from Russian sources about this region I could give you some advices. If you visit the aria try to dress and look like a local Russian, don't show visibly that you are Westerner, better use second hand dresses and try not to attract too much attention to yourself. Best season is early Autumn - September and October. I think you have 3 options:
1. You can visit one of "zapovedniks" (reservs) like "Lazovskij" or Sihote-Alinskij" zapovednik if somebody of the local scientists invite you as a scientist, they will show you everything. This is the best option, completely safe.
2. You can visit one of the national parks as "Zov Tigra" or "The Land of the leopard" close to the Vladivostok, the national parks unlike zapovedniks are open for tourists and accessible for everybody. I red that they have various trails each 10 to 15 kilometers long where you can walk and hike . The national parks in Ussuriland are completely safe for foreigners, already they attract foreign tourists, mainly from USA, Canada and Scandinavian countries. Tourism could help for protecting local nature but Ussuriland is so far from Europe and North America that could never attract massive safari tourism like Africa or Alaska, probably only Japaneese and Korean groups.
3. Third options is if you decide to visit more remote places outside protected arias, for example the monumental endless virgin forests of Bikin valley. In this case you accept significant risk. Nobody enter deep in the Ussuri forest without personal gun. You can easy be lost, frozen and worst of all - you can run into poacher or poachers (majority of local hunters are poachers as well) and if they decide that you are spying them you are in deadly danger. Also in some arias could hide escaped prisoners. If you want to visit Bikin valley you need to have close friend or friends in the aria to protect you. In this forests Russian state laws almost do not apply, the laws are made by forest guys. Outside national parks and "zapovedniks" only the tigers are so so relatively safe from people with guns because they have protection of the Big Boss in Kremlin, His long hand rich even this remote arias... But even they are not completely safe. You can rent a truck 4x4 from Vladivostok.
I also have a dream to visit Ussuri forest from early childhood but always delay the trip due to family and financial reasons....
WOLVERINE
Sorry for the late reply. I was out. Agreed with your view on the Russian Far East. It is a unique region in many respects. There are different reasons, but a lack of natural barriers blocking air masses from the north and south is important. The result, as you said, is a unique flora and fauna. A true boreal jungle.
As to the advice offered on visiting the region (many thanks!). I prefer the first option, but the problem is formal training. I have a degree, but I'm not a biologist and co-running a forum on the natural world with Sanjay isn't going to solve that problem. And a problem it is, as I know all about degrees and status. That leaves either a tour or visiting the region myself.
I prefer to go there myself. The problem is a lack of local knowledge. After reading a number of books on Ussuriland, I concluded that detailed knowledge of this vast region is a must. This means I need a few people who know about the taiga and the animals making their home in the boreal forest. As I have no contacts in Russia, I might use a tour to get to know a few people. But I wouldn't mind starting in the natural history museums of Vladivostok or Chabarowsk. In order to measure skulls, however, you need someone able to open a few doors.
As to remore regions and problems. I visited regions of great beauty in Europe, Australia and South America more or less on my own. As a result, I met quite many who made their home in the natural world.
I didn't see one type, but a mix of characters. As I wouldn't quite know how to cover it, I propose to distinguish between groups. In the first group, I though I saw those who have something going with the law. They seem more informed than others and stay out of sight. In the second group, you'll find those who don't feel at home in today's world. In the third group, you'll find professionals. Some are trappers, whereas others study or protect animals. The fourth group has those born and bred in the region. They do what is needed to survive. The last group has state officials, tourists and firms connected to tourism and hunting.
Remote regions with few people and rare wild animals also attract those interested in harvesting the products of the forest no matter what. Poachers and those interested in testing modern rifles can be dangerous. Those on the move all the time also qualify for this department. The unconnected.
As to character. Individualism seems to be more outspoken in remote regions. Those who have to deal with problems on their own in a region that has few people as well as large carnivores need to rely on themselves. For this reason, they, perhaps more often than those living in cities, need to be able to get to sound decisions; decisions good for them and not too bad for others. One could say these conditions tend to produce balanced characters.
As to risks. Animals first. Large wild carnivores, and big cats in particular, often are very aware of their neighbours. Only very few of them operate in the department of unprovoked attacks and most have a degree in humans and how to avoid them. The reason is you never know with twolegs.
As to weirdoism and location. Individuals first. Based on what I saw, I'd say that those suffering from problems in the top floor seem to avoid places where they are confronted with themselves and wildish neighbours with more than two legs. The reason is that individuals are more known in remote regions. This means that unsound decisions could have personal consequences. In regions where many millions live in close proximity, things are different in that definitions, especially in the department of law and order, seem to be somewhat, ehh, more elastic. Furthermore, they have doctors, judges, institutions and a lot more. If we add a lack of budget and overview, the conclusion is that retribution isn't all that personal. Last but not least, they have many errors with terrible consequences. For others.
Groups. As soon as they decide for large groups with outspoken ideas, a formal structure and a flag, humans seem to change their behaviour. Not seldom, it results in problems. Any difference between the US and Russia in this department?
In the US, remote regions seem to be a favourite of groups involved in extremism. Not seldom, members prepare for an all-out war. Not what you want. As a result of the constitution and the amendments, authorities often can't act. Not in time. The problem in Russia isn't hate groups and amendments, but poverty and professional organisations involved in poaching. That and a lack of budget. The result is that 20-40 Amur tigers are poached every year. Organisations involved in poaching do not distinguish between rangers and others opposing them. Terror often is the best way to succeed.
Any difference between the US and Russia for someone interested in visiting a remote region? Well, they don't have tigers in the US.
Anything to add? Yes. When you go out there, take good advice of people living close to large carnivores and reptiles with a bit of salt. The reason is that many don't really know about their wild neighbours. Same for fishermen who never ever saw a shark in the waters they know so well.
Remember this post has many generalisations with a very personal character.