There is a world somewhere between reality and fiction. Although ignored by many, it is very real and so are those living in it. This forum is about the natural world. Here, wild animals will be heard and respected. The forum offers a glimpse into an unknown world as well as a room with a view on the present and the future. Anyone able to speak on behalf of those living in the emerald forest and the deep blue sea is invited to join.
01-06-2018, 06:12 AM( This post was last modified: 01-07-2018, 11:10 AM by Greatearth )
Basic history of the South China Tiger and specimen
It believed to be more than 4000s South China tigers were in China before 1950s. Decades of massive hunting on wild animals, destroying habitats, development, and rapid human population growth in China leaded South China tiger to extinct in wild along with other animals. Man-eating tiger attacks were very common in China after Japan lost WW2 and left China. Main reason was Chinese eliminated most of wild prey like boar, mountain goat, and deer. It believed 105 tigers, 335 boars, 2157 deer, 415 fox, and 376 rabbit were hunted in Hunan province of 1956. Thus, tiger started target on human to find food. Attacking human and village by tiger was very common during 1950s. In 1957, an attack was reported to have killed 32 people in Hunan Province as official records.
South China tiger seems swimming to the numerous islands close from mainland China like the Indochinese tiger in Mekong delta of Vietnam, Bengal tigers in Sundarbans of Bangladesh, and Malayan tiger in Singapore.
There was record of one tiger in Xiamen island of Fujian. This South China tiger attacked and killed the Japanese soldiers in 1944 and Chinese in these area still believing this animal as patriot tiger.
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290 cm long and around 140~150 kg male South China tiger specimen. He was killed in south of Jiangsu.
He is not robust animal as Zhangjiajie tiger in 1965. Zhangjiajie tiger also had large and powerful skull, neck, and body than this male tiger. However, they are the same 290 cm long. This one was 140 kg, but male tiger from Zhangjiajie was 175 kg.
*This image is copyright of its original author
*This image is copyright of its original author
South China tiger specimen from Beijing Natural History museum.
Would South China tiger and other animals in China will ever back to China one day? Seems like many Chinese caring their tiger and other animals much as panda bear. Many of them are also sad about what Chinese in 1950s did it to the South China tiger.