July 29
International Tiger Day
According to some stories, they are the sacred guardians of the forests. But their living space is brutally occupied by people. A hundred years ago, there were about a hundred thousand tigers living in the wild, now there are less than three thousand left. Therefore, July 29 is International Tiger Day, which commemorates the drastic disappearance of the largest feline.
The Tiger Day was established on July 29 during the International Tiger Summit in 2010 to draw attention to these endangered animals. The mission of the day is to gain global support for the protection of the tiger's natural habitat. Deforestation and poaching are the main threats to tigers, with some subspecies already being completely extinct. Tigers are losing their habitat due to deforestation for rice fields or tea plantations. Only rainforests in the mountains remain, while forests in the lowlands, which were a natural habitat for tigers, have almost disappeared. Tigers are being killed for their rare fur, internal organs, and bones, which are smuggled to China for the belief that medicines and ointments made from them have miraculous healing properties. Despite the high penalties for poachers, hundreds of rare animals are killed each year. In recent years, Russia, Thailand, and India have joined forces to save tigers, even relocating entire villages to expand reserves. They aim to double the number of tigers by the Year of the Tiger in 2022. More information can be found on the Tiger Day website.
