Amur Tiger

Afterwork: The border.


I didn't have to do a damn thing to this one. It is perfect. At least to me, and I've been taken pictures of Tigers ever since I first started getting a year pass to the zoo. They were so beautiful today, it was chilly forty degrees, overcast, and most of the animals were on exhibit and even up and around.

The Amur (or Siberian) Tiger has the scientific name is “Panthera tigris altaica” and is the largest living cat in the world. The name ’Siberian’ is actually incorrect because these tigers do not live in Siberia but the Russian Far East in the Amur-Ussuri region of Primorski and Khabarovski Krais (States) whilst a few are found across the border in northern China and Korea.

Stories also tell of mythical times when a deal was struck between humans and tigers such that they would respect each other's territory - the tiger's forest, the people's village.

In some parts of Sumatra there is a yearly ritual in which this bond between tiger and humans is reaffirmed. Offerings of flowers and rice are presented in the houses, while outside the offerings are of raw meat and the blood of a water buffalo slaughtered for the occasion. It is thought that if the tiger does not get its yearly respect, it will leave the forest and disturb the village.

A tiger or its pawprints suddenly seen on the perimeter means that something in the village is wrong - someone has broken the rules. It may be anything from adultery to a failure to obey the village elders, or that the elders themselves have failed to perform certain tasks. The suspect is fined (in rice or chickens or goats depending on the severity of the crime) and the village chief will bring meat to the forest to inform the tiger that the fault has been corrected. Equally though, if a tiger kills, it has gone too far and retribution must be extracted. The tiger is hunted and killed, although this is done with respect, followed by ceremonial burial.

A number of researchers see the myths as inspired by respect, fear and common sense - common sense because tigers seldom attack humans. If they are left alone the village will be safe. Village youth today holds the same respect for these animals as their parents, so tiger myths are considered a living tradition.

However, a change in attitude can occur when sons leave the village to join the army or the police force, etc. These ideas are eroded when away from the home influence, and the compunction about indiscriminate killing of tigers is lost. Thus the planned government education programs about conservation are being aimed at all sections of the community throughout Indonesia. It is hoped that the message will reach other parts of Asia as well.



`lns