WASHINGTON (CN) - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will not review whether the tiger should be removed from the Endangered Species List, because there is not enough information in the request indicating removal may be warranted.
The petition was submitted in 1995, by a private individual.
The tiger originally ranged from eastern Turkey to southeastern Siberia and the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Bali, according to the agency's decision. Now, however, tiger populations are small and scattered, and man is one of the species' biggest threats, according to the decision. The big cat's habitat and natural prey populations have become smaller due to human use, and tigers also may be poisoned, shot or trapped by man, the agency decision says.
The tiger, as a foreign endangered species, is put on a list that does not allow wild tigers to come into the U.S. or cross state lines, dead or alive, in any form.
Captive tigers, on the other hand, may be used in interstate commerce if they are registered with the agency through Captive Bred Wildlife registration program, or permitted via an enhancement of survival permit. In addition, the majority of registered tigers are managed in the U.S. under the Species Survival Plan Program of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
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