International Tiger Day today: We have lost three sub-species for ever

Canberra, July 29: The National Zoo and Aquarium in Canberra has joined an Australasian breeding programme to help the Sumatran tiger---a critically endangered species, ABC Online reported.

The initiative was made on the occasion of International Tiger Day, which is observed on July 29 every year to raise awareness over the reservation of the striped cat. ['Not many reasons to be happy for tigers']

The International Tiger Day was founded at the tiger summit held at Saint Petersburg in Russia in 2010 to bring focus on the fact that wild tigers are fast nearing extinction. Several welfare organisations have pledged to help the animal and raise funds for its protection and conservation.

Bali, Caspian and Javan sub-species have become extinct

The tiger had once existed widely across Asia but now it has disappeared from most of the places of its former range. Today, the number of wild tigers have come alarmingly down and the species have been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Three sub-species of tigers---Bali, Caspian and Javan tigers have become extinct.

Six other sub-species still remain

Six other sub-species---namely, the Bengal, Indochinese, Malayan, Siberian, South China and Sumatran---still live on this planet.

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