CHINA: Hengdaohesi tiger breeding centre faces uncertain future due to lack of funds

A large tiger breeding centre in China's northeast is experiencing hard time providing food for its 236 Siberian tigers, currently living at the centre. Established in 1986, the original objectives of the Centre, were to attempt to assist in preserving the species, as well as breading tigers for use in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). In 1993, in response to international pressure, China passed a law prohibiting the import, export and sale of tiger products, placing the centre's ability to raise revenue from the sale of tiger parts at risk. Breeders were fined for selling bones and other parts of dead tigers, but it remain unclear how strictly the enforcement of this law has been implemented. A black market for tigers' body parts is thriving in China and despite recent advances in producing a synthetic alternative, there is still a huge demand for tigers' carcasses. However with revenues in decline the Hengdaohesi breeding centre is caught in a dilemma. Costs of storing storing dead tigers carcasses are on the increase, whilst revenues from sales of tiger products are in decline resulting in the very real possibility that the centre could face closure. "Forty percent of our bills are not covered right now. We need to make efforts and get help. August 30 is, adopt an animal day for tigers. We need to raise the awareness for protecting tigers," Xu Lu, centre's manager said. The tigers at the centre are fed six days a week, whilst cubs and nursing mothers eat every day of the week. Cubs whose mothers are not lactating are nursed by dogs, and those cubs are feed on cows milk. Male tigers can consume 8-10kg of food per day whilst females consume 6-8 kg of meat a day. This meat is a combination of beef, ox, chicken or pork. The park raises some revenue by charging member of the public to participate in feeding the tigers. Livestock such as chickens and calves can be purchased for RMB 70 (US$8.75) and RMB 2,000 (US250$), respectively, and then released by staff while the purchaser watches the "kill" from a safe vantage point of either a vehicle or elevated platform. In addition to the revenue from these two Parks, the Centre "rents" tigers to zoological gardens in China. Animal activists and experts call on China to strictly implement laws and to protect endangered species from being used for commercial purposes. "If we want to protect a priceless species, that's tigers, we should burn the bones and not ever think that you know, we keep it in order to generate money. It's a matter of, should we sacrifice national interest and China's imagine in order to benefit economically a few people that are breeding tigers", Asia Regional Director of International Fund for Animal Welfare, Grace Ge said. Traditional East Asian medicines use parts and derivatives from more than 1,000 plant and animal species including tiger bone, bear gall bladder, pangolin scales and rhinoceros horn. The trade in wildlife products in 2002 was estimated to be $66.5 million (USD). In Indonesia, more than 50 tigers are estimated to be killed every year. China tops the list of countries driving the demand up for the illegal wildlife trade. Other lucrative markets are Japan, South Korea and Taiwan "It is a dead end. You are right. The key to tiger protection is protect their habitat and protect their prey base. Several countries have done very well in Russia's Far East, in India. Many of the nature reserves for instance in India, tiger nature reserves, they have moved people out of the nature reserves in the 60's and 70's," Grace Ge said. The Siberian tiger is one of China's most endangered animals, with estimated only dozen of the big cats living in the wild near its northeast border with Russia.

ITN Source | July 21, 2006

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