There are more tigers in captivity in the US than there are living in the wild. One of the people responsible for this unnatural reversal was recently arrested in Bangladesh after a twenty year search. The infamous Habib Talukder [photo]--known as Tiger Habib--was finally tracked down on a tip after three previous arrest warrants had been issued for his capture. Bangladesh is home to the Sandurbans mangrove forest, largely inhospitable to man, but the Bengal tiger's last wild redoubt.
Habib was arrested in Madhya Sonatola village adjacent to the forest on Saturday. He is alleged to have killed 70 tigers in the Sandurbans. He started his career as a honey gatherer; he probably realized early on that much more money could be made poaching tigers for thier body parts. Villagers are reported to be both respectful and fearful of the poacher who, "secretly entered the Sandurbans and hunted wild animals, despite being banned from the forest long ago...there are some powerful gangs involved in this," said a police officer with knowledge of his arrest. The Bangladesh tiger census reported 114 tigers in the Sandurbans in 2018. New figures from WWF show a remarkable comeback for the tiger worldwide. In 2010 when tiger range countries pledged to double tiger numbers, there were as few as 3200 wild tigers. In India alone the number of wild tigers is now estimated to be 3,350 individuals, about three-quarters of the world's population. In Russia, the Amur subspecies, the world's largest, has increased by 15% in the past ten years. Loss of habitat and prey species, hunting, and poaching remain very real threats to tigers in the wild say experts.