A new tiger poaching study funded by global animal welfare charity World Animal Protection, previously the WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals), has found that short prison sentences and small fines may not stop determined tiger poachers in Indonesia killing these beautiful, endangered animals. The full study can be found here.
Poaching is one of the most devastating threats facing the world’s last 3,000 wild tigers. In a ground breaking new paper published in the scientific journal Biological Conservation, a team of researchers has reviewed 10 years of Tiger Patrol records that have revealed fascinating insights into poaching patterns in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Indonesia.
The study shows that during the 10-year period between 2005 and 2014, the National Park Management Authority Tiger Protection and Conservation Units (TPCUs) carried out a total of 757 anti-poaching patrols on foot totalling 3,713-patrol team days with 13,947 km walked.
Professor David Macdonald, WildCRU Director and contributing author, said: “What is immediately clear is the grit, bravery and determination of the individuals involved. Despite the tough terrain, during this 10-year period, six enforcement units patrolled nearly half the 1.4 million hectares of the Kerinci Seblat National Park”.
The researchers report that the TPCU enforcement effort during this time was also highly effective. Between 2010 and 2014, the teams detected and destroyed 231 tiger snares in the National Park, and led 24 enforcement operations that resulted in the arrest of 40 tiger poachers and traders.
Pk Dian, from FFI’s Indonesia Program and co-author of the paper, said: “This vital anti-poaching project puts boots on the ground and it pays dividends. We found evidence of 24 tigers in snares between 2010 and 2014. No doubt the number would have been higher if it were not for these enforcement efforts.”
More than 90% of those arrested were prosecuted. However, the researchers also report on the leniency of the punishments provided. While Indonesian Wildlife law allows a maximum five-year sentence and fine equivalent to $7,600, the study showed that the average sentence was closer to one year, with a fine of just $107.
Dr Neil D’Cruze, Head of Wildlife Research and Policy, at World Animal Protection and contributing author, said: “The findings of this important study highlight how enforcement effort needs to be equally backed up by political will if we are going to successfully prevent poaching and protect the world’s remaining tigers”.
The study, published as a result of collaboration between Fauna & Flora International’s Indonesia Programme, Indonesia Kerinci Seblat NP Management Authority and WildCRU, made possible by grant funding from World Animal Protection, has explored the effectiveness of a longstanding Tiger Protection and Conservation Programme in Kerinci Seblat National Park.
The 13,800 km2 Kerinci Seblat National Park spans the Indonesian provinces of West Sumatra, Jambi, Bengkulu and South Sumatra. Its forests and wildlife comprise a single management unit that is under the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Kerinci Seblat National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Level 1 Tiger Conservation Landscape, in recognition of its abundant and widespread tiger population.
The tiger (Panthera tigris) is currently considered to be ‘endangered’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Today, expert consensus is that there are only approximately 3,500 left surviving in the wild. Deforestation, encroachment of habitat and poaching (for their skins, bones, teeth and claws) have devastated tiger populations across Asia, but countries with the big cats are working to increase their numbers.
Image from Pixabay
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