A recent spate of alarming deaths has heightened fears for the Malayan tiger, wildlife authorities and conservationists say, with some calling the threat to Malaysia’s emblematic animal a “national emergency.”
Native to the jungles of peninsular Malaysia, the majestic feline subspecies is critically endangered, with fewer than 150 believed to be left in the wild due to habitat loss, illegal poaching and a decline in prey.
Found on Malaysia’s coat of arms and considered a national heritage symbol, its numbers have plummeted since the 1950s, when around 3,000 roamed the Southeast Asian country, officials say.
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