Endemic to the spectacular Indonesian island of Sumatra, the Sumatran tiger is genetically distinct from tigers of continental Asia. With as few as 400-500 individuals remaining, they are the rarest tiger subspecies. Despite its World Heritage Site designation and significance for Sumatran tiger conservation, their rainforest habitats remain inadequately patrolled by rangers. Sumatran tiger survival will be determined by the extent to which ranger teams are increased, equipped, and maintained.
Sumatran tigers face an onslaught of pressures not unlike those that caused recent extirpations of their mainland counterparts in Laos and Cambodia. Poachers-lured by lucrative rewards that overwhelmingly outweigh risks of capture and prosecution-snare, trap, and poison Sumatran tigers to supply illicit markets. "Ranger-reliant" is a more fitting phrase to describe the protection required to safeguard the species. *Impacts of the catastrophic cyclone now severely complicate the rangers' work.
Patrols, when regularly conducted, send a strong message to poachers that tigers are valued and their habitats are under surveillance. These ranger patrols work: Ranger teams increased rates of snare removal by ~41% in west Sumatra. And, in neighboring Malaysia, a 10-fold increase in ranger personnel led to a ~98% decline in poaching since 2018. *Cyclone Senyar - which made landfall in Sumatra on November 25, 2025 - devastated the rangers' communities; they need help to get back on their feet.
By mobilizing 10 new ranger teams, Hutan Harimau aspires to turn the tide on tiger declines. Greater protection for tigers in our study areas, which span 400 sq. miles at two sites, has ancillary benefits for co-occurring species ranging from towering Dipterocarp trees to tree frogs. *The floods and landslides from Cyclone Senyar now require immediate attention so the rangers and their families can recover.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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