will tigers disappear in the future?

A new scientifically-based count reveals the true extent of the catastrophic fall in tiger numbers. The last count in 2002 - based on the number of footprints found - put tiger numbers at 3,600 but this survey has now been discredited. 'If this trend continues, the wild populations will disappear from many more places' Renowned Indian conservationist Valmik Thapar said the latest census signalled "the end of the tiger for most of India." The Indian government is now involved in a desperate race to preserve the few tigers that are left and save the wild species from extinction. But the signs are not hopeful and experts forecast that the wild tiger, the largest of the big cats, will disappear and in a relatively short space of time could be seen only in a few heavily-protected reserves. The latest survey was led by Dr J VJhala - one of the few Indian wildlife biologists with an international reputation. His team, from the Wildlife Institute of India and trained forest officers, spent 352,000 man-days sampling 21,989 forest beats, walked 132,000km of line transects and completed 330,000km of carnivore sign surveys.

tigers wont disappear they would merely be put in zoos and cages, we could only see them in circuses and since their natural habitat is closely disappearing, someday they could only be a handful of them