ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)

[peter]

PANTHERA TIGRIS AMOYENSIS - F - TIGER SIEGE 3


F10 - Battle at the 'Hundred Tigers Village'

After war had been declared on the tiger, the 'tiger teams' launched one operation after the other. After a few years, tigers had become scarce in most parts of Hunan. The tiger teams had to move deeper into the mountains in order to find them.

Than something happened that flabberghasted all.

The Xuefeng Mountain Range is located in the west of Hunan Province. It ranges all the way to Guizhou Province in the southwest and Guangxi Province in the south. In the south of Tongdao County lies a small village with about 80 inhabitants, called Goa Ping Cun.

One afternoon in September 1957, the village peddler, called Zie Yaozong, was about to receive goods. He sent a bullock cart out of the village, when the bull suddenly rushed back. Xie also heard people screaming. The villagers saw tigers everywhere. They panicked and locked themselves in their houses. Fires were lit and noise was made, but it had no effect whatsoever.

At first, nothing happened. The village was sealed, but the tigers didn't loote it. That happened on the last day of the siege, when all domestic animals were killed. A little girl watching the event from the door opening was also taken. She wasn't the only one. The siege lasted for 3 days and nights (...). 


F11 - Aftermath

What happened in Gao Ping Cun, was recorded. It didn't make headlines, as there were many reports about a collective 'tiger madness' in those days (1950-1955). Many counties and villages reported about things never witnessed before.

Many moons later, journalists stumbled upon the story. Initially, it was treated as something close to hearsay. Later, reporters moved to Tongdao County and Goa Ping Cun in order to interview people who witnessed the event. They found Xie Changhua, the son of the village peddler mentioned before (Xie Yaozhong). In 2006, he published a book called 'God And King Tiger Hunt'.

They also interviewed a villager called Li Huaide and a magistrate from Tongdao County called Yao Rongyi. Yao was the 'tiger man' in the days of the siege, meaning he headed one of the many tiger teams. Both confirmed the story. The thing that amazed them was the level of organisation of the tigers. They didn't attack anyone at first, but just sealed the village. Amazed is the word I saw most often in the article about the siege. The tigers were described as very smart. Both Li Huaide and Yao Rongyi said the tigers were lead by a King Tiger.

These 'King Tigers' had a sign on their forehead. Most of them, like those in Shaoyang (see above), were large animals. Large male tigers in that part of south central China apparently averaged 180-200, but 'King Tigers' were larger. Yao Rongyi showed a reporter a skin that had belonged to a 'King Tiger' that exceeded 300 kg. (...). 


F12 - KIng Tigers

In the articles I read, the writers distinguished between 'normal' tigers and 'King tigers'. The distinction was in the markings on the forehead. Every tiger that had a distinct marking was a 'King tiger' and every 'King tiger' was significantly larger than an average tiger. I do not doubt that those with good information about the size of Chinese tigers will take paragraphs about exceptional 'King tigers' in old Chinese articles with a grain of salt, but that would be the easy way out. Those involved in the articles read journals and newspaper reports. They also visited museums and talked to people who actually participated in the war on tigers (or their children). I would get to firsthand sources. Reliable, that is. But reliable is different from accurate.

Based on what's available, I think there were differences in size between tigers in southeast China, eastcentral China, northeast China, northwest China and southcentral China. I don't think the average for males was over 181 kg. (400 pounds) anywhere, but there were regions where males most probably exceeded that mark. Hot spots, perhaps. 

As to the likelyhood of large tigers in some regions. After reading the articles, I'd say there was no shortage of food for tigers in southcentral China before the war on tigers started in the late forties of the last century. In 'Tiger Chase', a male tiger of 430 pounds (195 kg.) is mentioned. This animal, a male, was captive, but not quite in the way we would describe 'captive'.


F13 - A few statistics (Hunan Province)

- In 1952, before the 'tiger teams' were set up in Hunan, there were more than 1 000 tigers in that Province.

- Incomplete statistics suggest that 647 tigers were killed in Hunan Province in about 10 years time.

- After 1963, there were no more reports about tigers in journals and newspapers in Hunan.

- In 1964, the last tiger team was disbanded in Hunan Province.

- In 1976, Hua Feng Jia Shan Lin Chang workers caught the last South China tiger.

- In 1989, the South China tiger was enlisted as an endangered species.

- On November 6, 1986, in Anren County (Hunan province), a tiger cub was caught in a trap. The cub was injured and died 15 days later.

  
F14 - Current situation

In June 2001, in a 'land health wildlife resources survey report' of Hunan Province, it was stated that Hunan still had (some) tigers in the Shumen Huping Mountain Range and near the junction with Hubei Province (in the north). The total number of tigers was estimated between 4-6 individuals.

Hunan Province decided to increase the effort to improve the situation. Ten years later, there were 8,300 infrared cameras in the remaining forests. Although specialists think that Hunan still has tigers, not one of them was captured by the infrared cameras.

Case closed? Not quite. I found a number of articles about the South China tiger written by biologists. People who had walked the forests of Hunan after a report had been released about a tiger sighting somewhere in southcentral China, I mean. To them, it was clear that The South China tiger is not extinct. I'll post the article in some time. Reply