There were once an estimated 100,000 tigers throughout Asia. These days, less than 10% of that figure remains, with the latest population estimate at around 5,500 tigers in the wild.  Several subspecies have also become extinct or functionally extinct, including the Caspian, Bali, and South China tigers. This World Tiger Day, held July 29, learn about one of the rarer subspecies and how you can help it come back from the brink.

The Indochinese tiger was once common across Southeast Asia, found specifically in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, China, Thailand, and Myanmar. Today, only Thailand and Myanmar are believed to have breeding populations. In Cambodia, the species has been declared functionally extinct. They haven’t been seen in China in more than a decade, and they’ve disappeared from Laos. As for Vietnam, the last count was in the single digits. Population estimates overall range from 220 to 350, putting them into endangered status.

Numbering in the tens of thousands as recently as 1970, they’re now below 10% of their old population figures, like tigers as a whole. This is due to the usual threats facing all tigers, including poaching driven by high demand for their body parts, habitat loss and fragmentation, and increasingly being driven from their habitat by humans into isolated areas.

WWF says their historic range has been within the Greater Annamites and Lower Mekong Dry Forests ecoregions. Their habitat includes tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and dry forest. The largest concentration of the species can currently be found in Thailand’s Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary and neighboring Thung Yai Wildlife Sanctuary, which were estimated to have 89 Indochinese tigers in 2021. 

Weighing as much as 550 pounds and measuring up to 10-feet-long from nose to tail, Indochinese tigers are a bit smaller than their cousins the Bengal and Siberian tigers. They pack a powerful punch, though, hunting a wide variety of animals. Their favorites include wild boar and other ungulates like deer, but they’ve also been known to eat birds, fish, monkeys, and reptiles when given the chance. They occasionally manage to take down elephant calves, too. Unfortunately, they increasingly have less prey to choose from, contributing to their falling numbers.

An ecosystem without apex predators like tigers could spell disaster. They help regulate prey populations, which in turn ensures vegetation is healthy and balanced. Research has also shown that secured tiger habitat can help protect watersheds and boost carbon storage in forests. Their presence is helpful to farmers, as well, leading smaller predators to steer clear of them and eat herbivores near farms that would have otherwise gotten into the crops.

In an effort to safeguard habitat for animals like the Indochinese tiger, and to ensure healthy ecosystems in such a biodiverse region, Greater Good Charities’ Global Discovery Expeditions (GDE) expanded to Vietnam last year. GDE began in the Sonoran or Madrean Sky Islands of the American Southwest and Mexico. This unique region has a wide array of vegetation and plays host to more than half of North America’s birds. Our survey work there has involved studying two dozen sites, which has led to 61,000 records being added to a publicly viewable database scientists can use to help with conservation strategies. 

The reason the program expanded to Vietnam is due to its significance to global biodiversity. The country is home to 50,000 species of animals and plants and offers a variety of habitats, thanks to its varied elevations, moisture, and rain shadow effect. It’s believed that 16% of the world’s plants and animals can be found in the country. The first two trips to Vietnam have involved the recording of a variety of such species, from mammals and reptiles to amphibians. These were observed in the Sao La Nature Reserve - within the northern flank of mountains that are part of the Annamite Mountain chain - and the Dong Son-Ky Thuong Nature Reserve.

Each trip involves specialized Vietnamese and American scientists, through a partnership between Greater Good Charities, Vietnamese organization Wildlife at Risk, and the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources (IEBR). The overarching goal is exploring, studying, and protecting key biodiversity hotspots facing imminent threat and loss by providing the first step in conservation: the observing and recording of an ecosystem’s living species.

Indochinese tigers have historically been part of the living species in Vietnam. If you’d like to help us work to safeguard their habitat this World Tiger Day, click below!