Hi guys!

 

Since last blog I wrote about the RARESTRIPES charity collection, lets talk about tigers today!

 

TIGER SUBSPECIES

 

There are 9 recognized subspecies of tigers around the world:

Sumatran

Amur (Siberian)

Bengal (Indian)

South Chinese (Amoy)

Malay

Indo-Chinese

Bali

Javan

Caspian

 

Top 3 subspecies are the most well-known, but most people probably have never really heard of the last 3 names…

They are infact subspecies that have gone extinct during the mid 1900s.

 Sumatran Tigers, as you know from our SAMSARA Tshirt series, populate Sumatra in Indonesia. They are the smallest subspecies of tigers!

IUCN redlist : Critically Endangered

 

Amur Tigers used to inhabit a vast area from Russia to Korea, Northern China and Mongolia. Today, they are seen only in Russia. Said to be the largest of the 9 subspecies, research show that they are in fact generally getting smaller than those from early 1900s.

IUCN redlist: Endangered

 

Bengal Tigers live mainly in India, with some populations in Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal. They have the largest subpopulation counting at about 2000 individuals and population is in a slowly increasing trend. White tigers are actually recessive mutants of these subspecies!

IUCN redlist: Endangered

 

South Chinese Tigers, or Amoy Tigers, inhabit southern China. In fact, no wild individual has been sighted since the 1970s so it is highly likely that they have already gone extinct. Apparently DNA tests and geographical research show that they are the closest subspecies to the Pleistocene tigers!

IUCN redlist: Critically Endangered

 

Malayan Tigers live in central to southern Malay peninsula and there are only about 300 left. Physical appearances are very much similar to the Indo-Chinese Tigers, probably because their habitat range is contiguous. They also lived in Singapore, but the last tiger was shot to death in 1932…

IUCN redlist: Critically Endangered

 

Indo-Chinese Tigers, like the Malayan Tigers, have only approx. 300 left. They populate Southwest China, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos. In Cambodia they are already declared extinct, and the story of the last tiger in Cambodia inspired one of the designs of KENZO’s RARESTRIPES collection!

IUCN redlist: Endangered

 

Bali Tigers lived on Bali island. Last seen wild individual was back in the 1930s and were declared extinct in 2008. Until 2017 they were considered a distinct subspecies, but recent research revealed that they were in fact a Sunda Tigers subspecies. Sunda Tigers include Bali, Javan and Sumatran tigers. 

 

Javan Tigers lived in Java, one of the three Sunda islands that were populated by tigers. With physical appearances similar to the Sumatran tigers, they could have been the smallest subspecies had they not gone extinct! In 2008 they were declared extinct. In 2017 there were sightings of a large feline in Ujung Kulon National Park, which used to be the tigers' original habitat. They may be still around... :) 

 

Caspian Tigers were roaming the earth until the late 20^th ce. Centered around the Caspian sea, they inhabited lands from China to Turkey, Mesopotamia and the Caucasus nations. At one stage their population ranged overlapped with the Amur tigers, but the population eventually became divided after human intervention.

 

Current Status

 

There are only about 3800 tigers left in the world!

Compared to 1 century ago, that is almost a 95% decrease!!

As for the habitat range, compared to 1 decade ago it has decreased by 40% …

Tigers are threatened due to increase in the number of palm oil and acacia lumber plantations. Humans are invading their living space and deforestation is a serious problem. Poaching and illegal trade are also still a huge issue concerning this beautiful feline.

 

If you’ve noticed… all the surviving tiger species are either CR or EN, top 2 ranks closest to extinction…!

 

Tiger conservation

 

Many organizations around the world are working hard to support tigers and their environment.

 

WWF - http://tigers.panda.org

We all know who they are! They worked with KENZO and Tiger Beer to launch the rarestripes collection. They of course have a special conservation program going on for tigers.

 

JTEF - http://www.jtef.jp

An NPO working to support elephants, tigers, and Iriomote wild cat, an iconic but endangered cat in Japan.

 

Panthera - https://www.panthera.org/initiative/save-tiger-fund

Also a big organization operating worldwide to save over 40 species of endangered felines! Faux fur brands like SPIRITHOODS have been partners with this org since their brand establishment.

 

Fashion can become a strong statement that will always be close to our daily life. If more brands follow and work in hand with conservation groups it will be a great form of education!

We will be sharing more news where fashion and endangered species connect J