Sinheng Tse (China) encounters one of the few remaining South China tigers.
As this South China tiger paced around, Sinheng noticed the contrast between the pattern of its fur and the bars of the cage. The species is now extinct in the wild due to decades of persecution, and this individual is one of fewer than 200 left in zoos across China.
Just 70 years ago, an estimated 4,000 South China tigers roamed the southern forests - a habitat that’s since been fragmented or cleared for agriculture. The last confirmed sighting of a wild South China tiger was in 1988.
It’s believed that all captive South China tigers are descended from just six wild individuals. Inbreeding and crossbreeding with other tiger species means it’s now unlikely that any South China tigers will be able to be successfully reintroduced back into the wild.
China
Sinhang is from Guangzhou, China, and has been fond of animals and photography since he was a child. He hopes to increase people’s understanding of nature through photography because he believes that with better understanding, there will be better protection.
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