KarunaNews Story

Endangered tigers in Thailand's Western Forest Complex grew from about 40 to more than 140 between 2007 and 2023, although they disappeared from Java and Bali before the 21st century and from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam by the mid-2000s. Pornkamol Jornburom, Director of WCS Thailand, credits good enforcement by Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation. Each tiger has a unique stripe pattern so scientists can track them individually. "Recovery efforts are important not only for tigers -- these same forests protect most of the terrestrial biodiversity of Asia, provide ecosystem services for millions of people, and buffer the impacts of climate change by retaining healthy forested ecosystems," says Dale Mquelle, a senior tiger conservationist at WCS.