July 29th marks the International Tiger Day. The newborn tiger cub of the South China Tiger in the breeding base of Shaoguan this year also makes public debut.
The South China Tiger in the breeding base of Shaoguan is one of the three South China tigers breeding base in China, with 14 South China tigers living here.
On the same day, Shenzhen Project Care Foundation and Guangdong South China Tiger Provincial Nature Reserve held the "Guard the South China Tiger" storytelling event in Shaoguan. Experts, volunteers and breeders are invited to share their stories with South China Tiger.
Lei Shengqiao is a senior "tiger daddy" with more than ten years experiences. He shared a video of the newborn tiger cub on the event. The cub is very lively and healthy. The cub was born in the early morning of July 21, weighing 1,310 grams. "The survival rate of artificial feeding is much higher, so we decided to feed him by ourselves. Last year, there were four female cubs born at the base, and two of them are twins. This male cub is rare, so we all call it 'Little Master'." Lei Shengqiao said.
In his sharing, Lei Shengqiao also recalled his story with a docked tiger. "This situation is often caused by inbreeding." Lan Tianming, head of the endangered animal genome research group at BGI Research in Shenzhen, pointed out later. According to him, the existing South China tigers are all bred from the original 6 South China tigers. The survival rate of newborn South China tigers is low and prone to genetic diseases. Therefore, their team is studying the genetic lineage of the world's tigers, hoping to use gene management to help the South China Tiger to reproduce healthily. "I hope that the South China tiger will no longer be an endangered animal in the world." He expressed his wish at the scene.
The living environment of the South China tigers is also being concerned by experts. Matteo Convertino, an associate professor at the International Graduate School of Tsinghua University in Shenzhen, came to Shaoguan for the second time. He believed that Shaoguan has the best forests in Guangdong Province, and the biodiversity here is very conducive to rewilding tigers. "The ultimate goal of raising tigers is to rewilding them", as Lei Shengqiao said before. Matteo Convertino also said, "Humans should concern the characteristics of their own and other animal populations, so as to protect themselves."
And Zhong Lu, vice president of the Landscape Design Institute of the Shanghai Municipal Engineering Design Institute, showed a kindergarten of a South China tiger under planning. The design of the installation there will make the tigers feel like in nature, which is more conducive to the growth of little tigers.
In addition to experts, some international volunteers also shared their unique stories with the South China Tiger. American photographer Thomas Edison Harvey came to Shaoguan in May this year. He expressed his love for South China tigers by taking a number of wonderful photos of them.
Chen Xiangbo, director of Guan Shanyue Art Museum, once designed the logo "Ruihu" for this year's Spring Festival Gala. The "Ruihu" related cultural and creative products also inspired him to create a South China Tiger IP.
At the end of the event, the Shenzhen Project Care Foundation also called for participation in the "South China Tiger Safe Growth"(萌虎平安成长行动) event to help South China tigers. Since the Chinese New Festival this year, the total amount of fundraising of the event has reached 1.86 million yuan, of which China Ping An Group donated 1.5 million yuan, and more than 15,000 people donated.
Author | Alice
Video | Eastbrook
Editor | Wing, Jerry
