Reintroducing Tigers to Cambodia
Historically Cambodia's dry forests in the Eastern Plains supported diverse and abundant wildlife, including a large number of tigers. However, intensive poaching of both tigers and their prey lead to a rapid decline in the big cats. Today there are no longer any breeding populations of wild tigers in Cambodia and the species is considered functionally extinct.

WWF is supporting the Royal Government of Cambodia's plans to reintroduce tigers to the Eastern Plains Landscape. As one of the thirteen tiger range countries, Cambodia plays an important role in achieving Tx2 - the global goal to double wild tiger numbers by the year 2022.

Why should tigers be reintroduced to Cambodia?

Tigers are one of the most iconic species on the planet, yet they are more than just a beautiful animal. Reintroducing tigers not only benefits Cambodia's forests and wildlife, but the people of Cambodia, too. Listed below are some key benefits of reintroducing tigers.

Unique opportunity
Many tiger habitats in Southeast Asia such as mangroves or dense rainforest are not well suited for tourism, whereas Mondulkiri’s open and accessible forests offer an opportunity for successful tiger tourism.

Boosting Cambodia's Tourism Industry
Wild tigers in Mondulkiri will draw tourists, particularly those from East Asia, as an exciting new alternative to searching for tigers in India. It will encourage tourists to prolong their stay beyond a visit to Angkor Wat. Paired with the developing tourism around river dolphins, these species specific activities will elevate Cambodia’s tourist industry and will offer a unique experience in Southeast Asian tourism.

Increasing National Revenue
On top of entrance fees, significant tourism revenue is earned through the supporting infrastructure including vehicle and guide hire, merchandise, hotels and restaurants - all of which can benefit the national economy .
Tourism brings opportunity and income to local communities and deters poachers though an increase of attention on the area. It also hugely increases the value of maintaining a flourishing living ecosystem, which can in turn increase motivation for rangers and other frontline staff.

Where?
The Eastern Plains Landscape (EPL) is a vast forested region in northeastern Cambodia (and a small part of Vietnam) and is considered to be one of the best potential areas for tiger recovery in Southeast Asia. This is due to the extensive forests and availability of prey populations. The landscape spans an area of more than 30,000km2 and includes four key protected areas in Cambodia and one in Vietnam. These are: Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary, Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary, Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary, Seima Protected Forest and Yok Don in Vietnam.