The largest cat in the world is the Siberian tiger, also called Amur tiger due to the region in Russian Far East where it is found, the Amur-Ussuri region. As it happens with several animals, the Siberian tiger is included in the list of endangered species. In the 40's, this beautiful animal was in the brink of extinction: less than 50 tigers remained in the Boreal forests.



Many scientists say the current population, which is about 350 to 400 animals in the wild, is holding stable. But still, it is a small group that could be wiped out in a relatively small period of time if not protected. In relation to other subspecies of tigers, the Siberian tiger has an advantage: since the climate is quite harsh, there is a small human density, and, therefore, less human influence. In the past, there were 8 subspecies of tigers, but 3 became extinct in the 20th century. They were the Caspian, the Javanese, and the Balinese subspecies. The five others that still hold on are the Siberian, Bengal, Sumatran, Indochinese, and South China tigers. All of them are endangered, but the situation of the Siberian tiger is worse.

The natural habitat of these tigers is not actually Siberia, but the Russian Far East. There are small populations in North China and North Korea. They need a lot of space to roam and are solitary creatures. Their main preys are elks, wild boars, and deer. The Siberian tiger has great night vision, and its life expectancy is 10 to 15 years in the wild. Its natural habitat is the Boreal forest, also called taiga.

Taiga is a biome characterized by coniferous forests, which consist mainly of evergreen species such as larch, spruce, fir, and pine. It covers a great portion of Russia, especially Siberia. This biome has also got broad-leaf deciduous trees such as birch, willow, aspen, etc. Its fauna includes bears, lynxes, owls, eagles, small rodents, deer, wild pig, a considerable number of birds, among others. In the Russian Far East, we can also find a myriad of beautiful waterfalls. Because of spurs of the Manchurian Mountain Range stretching from China into Russia, there are many amazing waterfall formations. In the region of Primorye, we can find the enchanting Bolshoi Amginsky Waterfall, which in the winter is transformed into a gigantic icicle. Many crystal clear waterfalls are formed in the mountains of Primorye.

It is in this idyllic place that lives the Siberian tiger. And although regional logging is extensive, it does not represent a big threat right now because selective cutting is norm instead of clear cutting. Currently, a more serious problem is poaching, which is the Siberian tiger's most common cause of death. Numbers show we have a reason to be optimistic about the recuperation of the Siberian tiger's population, but let's not be too optimistic and forget that, even though it has increased in numbers, it still is a small population.