Greater Mekong region tigers
Countries in the region contain the largest combined area of tiger habitat in the world (roughly the size of France) for any of the tiger sub-species.
The majority of these tigers are found in the Kayah Karen Tenasserim forests on the Myanmar-Thailand border, while the Eastern Plains Landscape (Cambodia) is considered one of the highest potential areas in Asia for tiger recovery.
Southern Laos and Central Vietnam also have potential for recovery of wild tiger populations.
» Find out more about tigers in
Thailand,
Cambodia, and
Vietnam and Laos
Why are tigers threatened?
- Poaching to meet increasing demand for tiger body parts used in traditional medicine. Poaching of wild tigers is worsened by the increase in tiger farms in the region, especially in Thailand, Vietnam, and China, which maintains the demand for tiger products from all sources (including the wild).
- Habitat fragmentation from unsustainable infrastructure development. As roads and other projects separate forests into smaller isolated patches, this makes tigers more vulnerable to poaching.
- Poaching of tiger prey wildlife to satisfy a growing commercial demand for wild meat in restaurants and for use as traditional medicines.
The global wild tiger population is at an all time low of 3,200, down from an estimated 5,000-7,000 during the last Year of the Tiger in 1998. However, given the chance—enough space, enough prey, enough protection—wild tiger populations can recover.
