Synopses & Reviews
Beauty, grace and power make the tiger one of the world's most loved animals, yet it is precisely these qualities that have contributed to the tiger's peril. Poaching, loss of habitat and prey, and conflicts between people and wild tigers have caused a catastrophic decline in the worldwide tiger population. If wild tigers are to survive through the next century, we must act now. Riding the Tiger is a comprehensive, scientific, and eminently readable account of the problems and possible solutions of securing a future for wild tigers. Lavishly illustrated in full color, the book is written by leading conservationists working throughout Asia. It looks at tiger ecology and biology, examining the tiger in both its natural setting and in our own consciousness. In exploring our efforts at conservation, the book addresses topology and population dynamics. Later sections discuss prey depletion and region-specific studies. Riding the Tiger is a vital information resource for tiger conservationists in the field, as well as necessary reading for serious students of carnivore conservation and conservation biologists in general. For the general reader, it is an accessible and elucidating overview of tiger conservation. John Seidensticker is Curator of Mammals at the National Zoological Park, Smithsonian Institution. With extensive experience in Bangladesh, Nepal, India, China, Russia, Thailand and Indonesia, he has worked on the conservation biology of wild carnivores for more than 25 years, and is currently Chairman of the Save the Tiger Fund of the US National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and Mobil International. Sarah Christie is Conservation Programmes Co-ordinator at the London Zoo. Having overseen the expansion of the Zoological Society of London's tiger conservation programme, she is active in the implementation, management and collaboration of tiger conservation programmes around the world. Peter Jackson is Chairman of the Cat Specialist Group at the World Conservation Union (IUCN). A freelance writer and photographer, Jackson was previously the Chief Correspondent on the Indian subcontinent for Reuters News Agency, and has contributed to Smithsonian Magazine, International Wildlife, and BBC Wildlife. He has traveled widely in Asia, Africa, and the Americas and has published extensively on tiger conservation.
Review
"Riding the Tiger is the best 1990s single-species account I have read...Seidensticker, Christie, and Jackson are to be commended. Riding the Tiger is bold, creative, and comprehensive." Conservation Biology"Riding the Tiger is the best 1990s single-species account I have read...Seidensticker, Christie, and Jackson are to be commended. Riding the Tiger is bold, creative, and comprehensive." Conservation Biology
Synopsis
A full colour, readable, and scientifically accurate account of tiger conservation.
Synopsis
Riding the Tiger is a readable, comprehensive and scientific account of the problems and possible solutions of tiger conservation. Lavishly illustrated in colour, and written by experts throughout the tiger's range, it will be an essential reference for anyone interested in this beautiful, but threatened species.
Synopsis
Tigers are amongst the world's most loved and most endangered species. Habitat loss, conflicts between humans and wild tigers, and poaching have led to a catastrophic decline in tiger numbers. Riding the Tiger is a readable, comprehensive and scientific account of the problems and possible solutions of tiger conservation. Lavishly illustrated in colour, and written by experts working throughout the tiger's range, it will be an essential reference for both professionals and general readers interested in this magnificent animal.
Table of Contents
Foreword Richard Burge; Preface John Seidensticker, Peter Jackson and Sarah Christie; Part I. Introducing the Tiger: 1. Ecology, behaviour and resilience of the tiger and its conservation needs Mel Sunquist, K. Ullas Karanth and Fiona Sunquist; 2. Tiger distribution, phenotypic variation and conservation issues Andrew C. Kitchener; 3. Subspecies of tigers Joelle Wentzel, J. Claiborne Stephens, Warren Johnson, Marilyn Menotti-Raymond, Jill Pecon Slattery, Naoya Yuhki, Mary Carrington, Howard B. Quigley, Dale G. Miquelle, Ron Tilson, Jansen Manansang, Gerald Brady, Lu Zhi, Pan Wenshi, Huang Shi-Qiang, Leslie Johnston, Mel Sunquist, K. Ullas Karanth and Stephen O'Brien; 4. The tiger in human consciousness Peter Jackson; Part II. Tiger Ecology: Understanding and Encouraging Landscape Patterns and Conditions where Tigers Can Persist: 5. Population dynamics of the Amur tiger in Sikhote-Alin Evgeny N. Smirnov and Dale G. Miquelle; 6. Hierarchical spatial analysis of Amur tiger relationships to habitat and prey Sale G. Miquelle, Evgeny N. Smirnov, Troy W. Merrill, Alexander E. Myslenkov, Howard B. Quigley, Maurice B. Hornocker and Bart Schleyer; 7. Prey depletion as a critical determinant of tiger population viability K. Ullas Karanth and Bradley M. Stith; 8. Long-term monitoring of Indian tigers K. Ullas Karanth, Melvin E. Sunquist and K. M. Chinnappa; 9. Tigers in Panna Raghunandan Chundawat, Neel Gogate and A. J. T. Johnsingh; 10. Last of the Indonesian tigers: A cause for optimism Neil Franklin, Bastoni, Sriyanto, Dwiatmo Siswomartono, Jansen Manansang and Ronald Tilson; 11. The status of the Indochinese tiger Alan Rabinowitz; 12. Mapping the metapopulation structure of Thailand's tigers James L. David Smith, Schwann Tunikorn, Sompon Tanhan, Saksit Simcharoen and Budsabong Kanchanasaka; 13. Metapopulation structure of tigers in Nepal James L. David Smith, Charles McDougal, Sean C. Ahearn, Anup Joshi and Kathy Conforti; Part III. Approaches to Tiger Conservation: A: Linking in situ and ex situ tiger conservation: 14. Effective tiger conservation requires co-operation Ron Tilson and Sarah Christie; B: The trade in tiger parts and what to do about it: 15. The beginning of the end of tigers in trade Ginette Hemley and Judy Mills; 16. Roaring back: Anti-poaching operations in the Russian Far East and the comeback of the Amur tiger Steven Russell Galster and Karin Vaud Eliot; 17. Tiger anti-trade and anti-poaching strategies for the Indian sub-continent Ashok Kumar and Belinda Wright; C: People, tiger habitat availability and linkages for the tiger's future: 18. Where can tigers live in the future? Eric D. Wikramanayake, Eric Dinerstein, John G. Robinson, K. Ullas Karanth, Alan Rabinowitz, David Olson, Thomas Mathew, Prashant Hedao, Melissa Connor, Ginette Hemley and Dolene Bolze; 19. A habitat protection plan for the Amur tiger Dale G. Miquelle, Troy W. Merrill, Yuri Dunishenko, Evgeny N. Smirnov, Howard B. Quigley, Dimitriy G. Pikunov and Maurice B. Hornocker; 20. The tragedy of the Indian tiger Valmik Thapar; 21. Reconciling the needs of conservation and local communities Kathy MacKinnon, Hemanta Mishra and Jessica Mott; 22. Tigers as neighbours Eric Dinerstein, Arun Rijal, Marnie Bookbinder, Bijaya Kattel and Arup Rajuria; Epilogue: Securing the tiger's future John Seidensticker, Peter Jackson and Sarah Christie; Appendices; Literature cited; Index.