China and Russia agree to work together to save the Amur tiger

Aim to create a cross-border protected area

August 2010: Conservation efforts to save the endangered Amur tiger have received a boost after Russia and China formally agreed to create a cross-border protected area for the big cats.

WORKING TOGETHER: China and Russia signed the agreement at the Amur Tiger Cultural Festival

In a formal agreement signed during celebration for the second annual Amur Tiger Cultural Festival in the the north-eastern Chinese city of Hunchun, Jilin province of China and neighbouring Primorsky in Russia have agreed to collaborate to create the special area, thought vital to protect the world's largest big cat. Also known as the Siberian tiger, its population in the wild has dwindled to a mere 500.

The agreement, which was facilitated by global conservation organisation WWF, will help wildlife authorities eventually establish a protected area that crosses international borders and means the two sides will work together in establishing a tiger conservation protected area in both provinces, as well as partner to restore the endangered species.

Knock-on benefits for other species
‘A new transboundary protected area would provide a wider and healthier habitat for Amur tigers and other endangered species, such as the Far East leopard, musk deer and goral,' said Yu Changchun, Director of Conservation Department of Jilin Forestry Department.

WWF-China's conservation director Dr Zhu Chunquan said: ‘While tigers – the species at the top of the eco-system – are better conserved through the agreement, other species, the forest habitat and all the bio-diversity resources will also benefit from this protected area.'

As part of the agreement, Jilin and Primorsky provinces will increase information-sharing on Amur tiger and Far East leopard protection, work to adopt identical monitoring systems for tigers and their prey and conduct joint ecological surveys. They will also develop plans to launch an anti-poaching campaign along the China-Russia border.

‘This is a major step forward'
Destruction and fragmentation of habitat, poaching and lack of prey have had a dramatic impact on the number of wild Amur tigers. One of six remaining subspecies of tiger, the Amur tiger is primarily found in eastern Russia, with a small number in north-eastern China. Among that population, 20 tigers have been periodically spotted within the borders of China's Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces.

PARADE: The festival celebrated the Amur tiger – otherwise known as the Siberian tiger

‘This agreement is a great boost for Amur tiger habitats in Russia and China. Since both countries play a crucial role in terms of global tiger recovery, a future transboundary network would represent a big step in WWF's global tiger conservation effort,' said Dr. Sergey Aramilev, the Biodiversity Coordinator for Amur Branch of WWF-Russia, which is also involved in promoting the agreement. ‘There's a lot of work to be done to implement this agreement, such as making sure it receives proper government funding, but this is a major step forward.'

The agreement marks another milestone during the Chinese Year of the Tiger in 2010. WWF launched the TX2 campaign early this year, which seeks to double the number of wild tigers by the next Year of the Tiger in 2022. A groundbreaking tiger conservation declaration from the 13 countries that still have wild tiger populations was prepared in Bali, Indonesia in July this year, and is due to be signed before the close of Year of the Tiger at a tiger conservation summit hosted by Russia. The Declaration seeks to create a tiger recovery program that is global in scope while also promoting transboundary cooperation amongst the 13 tiger range countries.