Siberian tigeralso called amurski, is The largest of the Asian Tiger subspecies. He lives The place of the above sea level i Chabarian country at the eastern edges Russia. The natural environment of the Siberian tiger is mountain, dense coniferous and mixed forests near rivers and streams.
In recent months, these wild animals began to appear in human settlements. In January, the inhabitants of the Primors village in the coastal country recorded a video message to the head of the Oleg Kozemyako region and began a collection of signatures under a written appeal to Vladimir Putin. According to the authors, in May and December there were tigers' attacks on dogs.
People are afraid to leave the homes
– People are very afraid now. After all, they are predators, they are unpredictable. Now they are hungry all the time, because there are no animals they usually eat. In the past, there were a lot of wild boars in our area, but in the last two years their population has decreased. Nobody knows why this happened, but we see that tigers have no other choice but to go to people and hunt dogs – says Sibir. Realia Elin, one of the inhabitants of Primorska.
In social media, you can find reports of noticing tigers almost every day. At the beginning of February, in the village of Filipowka, the predator invaded the farm and dragged a Husky dog to the forest. In the village of Andrejewka, the tiger could not break the chain dog, so he bit him in the yard. Residents say that they are particularly afraid to leave their homes at night.
– Those who have a weapon permit are ready to shoot a predator in an act of desperation – says Elina. This solution, however, may have legal consequences – Siberian tigers are threatened with extinction and are under strict protection.
Russia. Residents are afraid of tigers, helpless authorities
What does the Russian authorities say? – They say “keep bravely”. What can they do? They can only catch a tiger and let him go into another part of the region. But this is not a solution, because the tiger will most likely find a way to its surroundings – says a village resident.
There are two nature reserves in the village of Barabasz. All roads run through forest areas. Children every day, on their way to school, risk a possible predator attack. – There are too many tigers in our small area. And this is one of the reasons for their migration to populated areas – says Irina, a resident of the village.
Residents are devastated. Local authorities have their hands tied up. When the tiger attacks, the inhabitants call the police and the Hunting Inspectorate. The services come to the place, secure evidence and write a report. Each incident is recorded, but To catch a tiger, you need to complete the documentation and wait for an answer with Moscow. It is there that the decision to permit or does not capture it is made.
Tigers paralyze the life of the Russians. “The authorities have no idea”
In January, an expert meeting was held in the state pride, whose participants agreed that The state is not yet able to solve the problem of tigers. As the main cause of the crisis they give Epidemic of African swine fever from 2019., which led to the destruction of about 75 percent. wild boar population. Experts, however, believe that this is not the most important factor. The situation of tigers is primarily influenced by uncontrolled desecration caused by the export of pine nuts i Hunting for ungulate animals by poachers.
– We see that the authorities do not yet have an idea to solve this problem. They now have more important problems. For now, it is clear that local residents, like Amur Tigers, have become hostages of this situation. The conflicts will last – says an anonymous environmental expert.