TAKING turns to act as human ploughs, Liang Jianmin and his tiger survey team forge through kilometres of knee-deep snow in the mountain forests near China's frozen mountain border with Siberia.From dawn to dusk they track, looking for droppings, paw prints, bark scratchings, scraps of fur caught on twigs and fences, any sign that the Amur tiger - the biggest cat species in the world - is still alive in the wilds of China.
Next week, China will start the Year of the Tiger with fireworks, feasting and a new drive by the government, the World Bank and conservation groups to halt the perilous decline of Asia's most powerful wildlife symbol.
Since the last Year of the Tiger, in 1998, the wild population of the animal worldwide has almost halved to about 3200 due to habitat loss, economic development and poaching for hides and traditional medicine.
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Being a tiger myself, a water tiger, I feel this will be a good year, this metal tiger year, or what the Chinese say, the Golden Tiger Year 2010! For all of the Chinese horoscope signs, this year is one to be active – seizing opportunities and making the most of our personal and very individual talents. Everything happens quickly and dramatically in a Tiger year – blink and you could miss an important chance of a lifetime!
Drama, intensity, change and travel will be the keywords for 2010. Unfortunately, world conflicts and disasters tend to feature during Tiger years also, so it won’t be a dull 12 months for anyone.
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