There are far more tigers in the world than previously thought, according to a new population assessment by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The wild tiger population sits somewhere between 3,700 and 5,600, up 40 percent from the last tiger assessment in 2015, the IUCN said in a July 21 report. Improvements in monitoring led to the higher numbers, the report stated.
Although still endangered, the world tiger population is now either stable increasing, the report said. The IUCN credited habitat conservation programs for allowing the population to grow.
Major threats to tigers in the wild include poaching and habitat destruction and fragmentation due to development and agricultural expansion, the organization said….