Tigers in trouble as Malaysian big cat numbers dwindle

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Experts and officials say that resources fall far short of what is needed to protect Malaysias national animal, listed as critically endangered.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: UNSPLASH

KUALA LUMPUR – For two years, Malaysian conservationists tracked a tiger named “Bulan” as she raised four cubs. Then a fatal traffic accident made her another statistic in the country’s dwindling population.

Malaysia’s national animal is in trouble.

Poaching, food loss and diminishing habitat have slashed the population from 3,000 in the 1950s to less than 150 roaming free today, according to official estimates.

The government said in September it was ramping up efforts to combat wildlife crime, introducing AI-enabled camera traps and methods to detect smuggling at airports.

But experts and officials admit that resources fall far short of what is needed to protect the country’s famed big cat, listed as critically endangered.

Bulan (Moon in Malay) was killed on the East-West Highway, a throughfare notorious for animal traffic incidents.

“We were devastated when we lost her,” said Ms Lara Ariffin, president of the Tiger Protection Society of Malaysia (Rimau).

“Not only that, she was butchered after she was run over,” Ms Ariffin told AFP, showing graphic pictures of the animal’s carcass.

“They took her canines, they took her claws. For me, it was like desecrating the dead.”

The fate of the apex predator’s population leapt back into local headlines recently after a

dead tiger was found in the back of a car

Three poachers were later handed seven-year jail sentences and a US$59,000 (S$76,700)