**NEWS FROM WCS**

CONTACT: SCOTT SMITH: (1-718-220-3698; ssmith@wcs.org)

STEPHEN SAUTNER: (1-718-220-3682; ssautner@wcs.org

PHOTOS: WCS helped identify the poached tiger through camera traps that showed its unique stripe pattern.  WCS experts identified the animal as a female photographed Huai Kha Khaeng (HKK) Wildlife Sanctuary.

WCS Praises Government of Thailand for Swift Action in Tiger Arrest

  • Tiger skin and body parts found at the police checkpoint in Mae Sot District, Tak Province, Western Thailand
  • Camera trap photo showed tiger came from Huai Kha Khaeng (HKK) Wildlife Sanctuary
  • WCS science is solving crimes and stopping poachers
  • Poached tiger was a female with cubs

NEW YORK (November 18, 2015) – The following statement is from WCS’s Joe Walston, Vice President of Global Conservation praising the government of Thailand for arrests of alleged poacher who killed a tiger last seen alive in Huai Kha Khaeng (HKK) Wildlife Sanctuary.

“The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) commends the government of Thailand for arresting an alleged tiger poacher for possessing a tiger skin from an animal killed in a wildlife sanctuary. 

“WCS helped identify the tiger through camera traps that showed its unique stripe pattern.  Our experts identified the animal as a female photographed Huai Kha Khaeng (HKK) Wildlife Sanctuary. The tigress was photographed with cubs, now estimated to be two years old.  The fate of the cubs remains unknown.

“Thailand continues to show a strong commitment to conservation and management of its protected areas.  The Western Forest Complex remains one of the largest remaining strongholds for tigers in Southeast Asia.  WCS is proud to work with the government of Thailand and provide scientific expertise.

“WCS is confident that the poacher will be fully prosecuted, which will send a strong message to wildlife traffickers that Thailand takes wildlife crime extremely seriously.”

In 2011, authorities in Thailand arrested and eventually prosecuted poachers who killed a tiger and took pictures of it on their cell phone.  WCS camera trap images eventually proved the tiger was killed in a protected area.

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WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society)

MISSION: WCS saves wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education, and inspiring people to value nature. To achieve our mission, WCS, based at the Bronx Zoo, harnesses the power of its Global Conservation Program in nearly 60 nations and in all the world’s oceans and its five wildlife parks in New York City, visited by 4 million people annually. WCS combines its expertise in the field, zoos, and aquarium to achieve its conservation mission. Visit: newsroom.wcs.org Follow: @WCSNewsroom. For more information: 347-840-1242.