The State Forestry Administration (SFA) will organize a team of
experts to carry out a special investigation into the existence of
the "extinct" wild South China tigers in China's northwest Shaanxi Province.
File photo of South China
tiger
?
A farmer in Chengguan Township of Shaanxi's Zhenping County
claimed that he took a digital picture of the tiger. The picture
sparked heated public suspicion although local authorities
confirmed its authenticity.
"We are organizing a team," SFA spokesperson Liu Xiongying told
Xinhua. "But forestry investigation is a complicated task and we
are still making specific plans, including selecting experts."
He declined to give further details but commented that public
attention paid to the wild South China tigers shows Chinese people
care more and more about ecology and the protection of wild
animals.
The Shaanxi Provincial Forestry Department has banned all
hunting around the mountain where the wild South China tiger was
claimed to have been spotted, and ordered checkpoints at the main
entrances to the mountain area to prevent uncontrolled entry and
protect the endangered tiger and its habitat.
The wild South China tigers, an endangered tiger subspecies
believed to have been extinct in the wild for more than 30 years,
is listed as one of the world's ten most endangered animals.
The SFA said that the Zhenping County was one of the major
habitats for wild South China tigers throughout history.
(Xinhua News Agency October 27, 2007)
