The tiger population of India has increased to almost 3,000, a third more than it had four years ago, according to the latest tiger census.
The announcement comes on International Tiger Day. The results of the census show that India is now the safest region in the world for tigers,estimating to be home to around 70% of the world’s tigers.
The result is a huge jump from previous counts. Less than fifteen years ago the tiger population of India was less than half than it is now, at approximately 1,400.
India counts its tigers once every four years – it’s a long trekking across half a million square kilometres (193,000 sq miles) looking for evidence of the tiger population.
Although the tiger population has increased significantly in recent years, hunting of the endangered animal is still rampant.
