Why should we save tigers?

1. The tiger awes you

/ ©: Klein & Huber / WWF
Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica)
© Klein & Huber / WWF
Admit it – the words 'superb creature' don't do justice to the tiger.

The big cat is revered, admired and feared in equal parts, by millions of people around the world. If forests are emptied of every last tiger, all that will remain are distant legends, zoo sightings, and one massive breach of trust.

Can we really say we loved everything about the tiger, except its existence?
/ ©: WWF
Help save wild tigers
© WWF


 

2. A home for tigers = a home for others

/ ©: Alain Compost / WWF-Canon
The critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) is just one of the many species that will be saved alongside tigers.
© Alain Compost / WWF-Canon
With just one tiger, we protect around 100 sq km of forest.

To save tigers, we need to protect the forest habitats across Asia where they live. And by saving these places, we will not only allow tigers to roam freely, but also many other endangered species that live there and form the very thing that makes our planet unique – biodiversity.

3. Healthy tiger populations = healthy ecosystems

/ ©: Tshewang R. Wangchuck / WWF-Canon
Local resident with grass harvested from tiger habitat, Terai Arc, Nepal. Local communities living with tigers are often very dependent on natural resources provided by tiger habitat, including fuel, building materials, animal fodder, and food.
© Tshewang R. Wangchuck / WWF-Canon
As a large predator, the tiger plays a key role in maintaining healthy ecosystems.

These ecosystems supply both nature and people with fresh water, food, and many other vital services – which means by saving the tiger, we are helping people too.

How's that for a win-win deal?

4. Tigers are a lifeline for many people

/ ©: R. Isotti, A. Cambone - Homo Ambiens / WWF-Canon
Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) walking past tourist group, Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India.
© R. Isotti, A. Cambone - Homo Ambiens / WWF-Canon
Tigers can directly help some of the world’s poorest communities.

For one thing, where tigers exist, tourists go. And where tourists go, money can be made by communities with few alternatives for making a living.

Tiger conservation projects also help provide other alternative livelihoods for rual communities, that are not only more sustainable but which can raise income levels too.

5. The tiger is a survivor

/ ©: David Lawson / WWF-UK
Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae)
© David Lawson / WWF-UK
The tiger has evolved over thousands of years.

Now this big cat is being trapped, skinned, and pushed out of its home. And yet it clings to survival, barely, in a few patches of forest scattered across Asia.

That's enough of a reason to give this species a fighting chance to make it into the next decade.

Will you help tigers survive?

Not enough? Why do YOU think we should save tigers?

Do you have another reason why tigers should not go extinct in the wild? Add it here!
 
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Photos and graphics © WWF or used with permission. Text available under a Creative Commons licence.