Experts have been dis-patched to Northwest China's Qinling
Mountains area to investigate claims a farmer photographed a wild
South China tiger earlier this month, according to a State Forest
Administration (SFA) newsletter published yesterday.
Qinling Mountains in Zhenping County, Shaanxi Province, was
formally an important habitat for the South China tiger.
The SFA said efforts to protect the forest and its wildlife had
resulted in improvements to the habitat and recovery of native
species.
It was thought wild South China tigers had been wiped out. There
are about 50 of the big cats in zoos.
Earlier this month, the Shaanxi forestry department showed off a
digital photo of what appeared to be a South China tiger, the first
time the species has been seen in the wild for more than two
decades.
The photographer was Zhou Zhenglong, 52, a farmer and former
hunter from Chengguan Township in Zhenping County. He said he took
the photo on October 3.
Some experts, however, suspect the photo is a computer-generated
fake, citing the blurred image and lighting.
Fu Dezhi, a researcher from the Chinese Academy of Sciences said
in his blog that Zhou might have faked the picture using a paper
tiger.
The authorities, however, insist the picture is authentic.
"Zhou Zhenglong risked his life taking these photos so they are
very precious. We are being cautious and responsible by releasing
one of the photos," Zhu Julong, deputy head of the provincial
forestry department, said.
Zhou was not a professional photographer, he said, and
understandably panicked when he was close to the tiger, which
explained why the images were blurry.
The SFA plans to launch a thorough search of the Qinling
Mountain area to investigate the existence, or not, of the South
China tiger in the wild.
(China Daily October 25, 2007)