26 Sep 2017
A long-discussed plan to reintroduce tigers into the wild in Cambodia appears to be clawing its way forward, as the Ministry of Environment announced yesterday that the Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary in Mondulkiri had been chosen as a habitat.
In a Facebook post, the Ministry of Environment said that officials and conservation groups went to Mondulkiri yesterday with counterparts from India, which would supply the tigers.
A camera-trap study conducted in 2007 found there were approximately 10 to 15 wild tigers left in the Kingdom. The species is considered to be functionally extinct in the country, with poaching and habitat loss linked to the species’ decline.
Previously reported cost estimates for the reintroduction plan range from $15 million to $50 million dollars. Of concern for environmentalists is whether or not there will be enough rangers to provide protection for the species.