St. Petersburg Gears Up For Tiger Summit
St. Petersburg is getting ready to host what's considered a critical attempt to save the world's tiger population. As the Global Tiger Initiative declares:
"We aspire to a world where, by 2020, wild tigers across Asia will no longer face the risk of extinction - and will live in healthy populations within high conservation value landscapes that are managed sustainably for present and future generations."
However, experts are advising that some decidedly tough decisions need to be taken if such a goal is to be attained.
Only 13 countries in the world still host tiger populations, and environmentalists hold that 4 of those countries - China, Vietnam, Cambodia and North Korea - have already gone beyond the pale. The experts are urging that resources should go to the remaining countries, otherwise the animal may indeed become extinct.
It is estimated that only 3200 tigers still exist in the wild, of which only about 1000 are breeding females.