AR-News: (China) Can tiger both reclaim, become wild?

[Animalara2003 at aol.com]

Imagine an endangered tiger species without a proper home or the means to 
survive in the wild. 
Enter Chinese and foreign experts carefully examining two Chinese sites they 
hope may become perfect habitats for the South China Tiger. 
And, if all goes will, with intervention from these caring humans, the animal 
will be trained to survive on its own in the wild. 
But the "go-wild" plan for the tigers -- now numbering just 20 to 80 animals 
in the wild -- is being questioned by some wildlife experts who say that 
rebuilding their ruined habitat should be given top priority. 
Nonetheless, with the support of the international organization, Save China's 
Tigers, two South China tiger cubs, one female and a male, were sent from the 
Shanghai Zoo to South Africa on September 1 for training that experts hope 
will enable them to hunt and live independently in the wild. 
A total of five to 10 tigers will be sent to South Africa within the next 
five years, with the first batch of tigers returning to China at the same time as 
the Olympic Games, in 2008. 
It is expected the trained tigers will live independently in the wild at the 
chosen habitats, and that self-sustaining South China Tiger clans will soon 
appear. 





full story:

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-03/01/content_310699.htm 
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