Tigers ‘barcoded’ in bid to beat skin trade
Tigers in Thailand are to be electronically tagged in an effort to end the illegal trade in tiger skins that threatens the endangered big cats with extinction.
Wildlife officials are building up a database of every tiger in the country, wild and captive, that will eventually allow each one to be identified and traced from its unique stripe pattern, according to a report on CNN.
They are also developing stripe recognition software which will enable computers to identify individual animals, turning their distinctive pelt into a form of natural barcode.
The scheme is being piloted at the Tiger Temple near Kanchanaburi, where Buddhist monks care for about a dozen tame tigers. The temple has also become a tourist attraction with visitors allowed to pet the creatures and pose for photos.
But wildlife officials believe it is necessary to extend the tagging project across the whole country to tackle the tiger trade.
“If possible we would like all zoos or tiger farms to cooperate with us,” said Saksit Simcharoen. “It’s not the law now but it’s something that can control smuggling.”
Tigers are not only highly prized for their fur but for their meat which is used in traditional medicine.
Conservationist Chatchawan Pisdamkham said there were only 300 wild tigers estimated to be left in the entire country. Around 860 tigers live in captivity.