NEW YORK (JUNE 18, 2009) – The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
announced today a major breakthrough in the science of saving tigers:
high-tech DNA fecal sampling.

According to the study, researchers will be able to accurately count
and assess tiger populations by identifying individual animals from
the unique DNA signature found in their dung. In the past, DNA was
collected from blood or tissue samples from tigers that were darted
and sedated. The authors say this new non-invasive technique
represents a powerful new tool for measuring the success of future
conservation efforts.

The study appears in the June 16th edition of the journal Biological
Conservation. Authors of the study include: Samrat Mondol of the
National Centre for Biological Sciences; K. Ullas Karanth, N. Samba
Kumar, and Arjun M. Gopalaswamy of the Wildlife Conservation Society
and Centre for Wildlife Studies; and Anish Andheria and Uma
Ramakrishnan, also of the National Centre for Biological Sciences.

"This study is a breakthrough in the science of counting tiger
numbers, which is a key yardstick for measuring conservation success,"
said noted tiger scientist Dr. Ullas Karanth of the Wildlife
Conservation Society. "The technique will allow researchers to
establish baseline numbers on tiger populations in places where they
have never been able to accurately count them before."

The study took place in India's Bandipur Reserve in Karnataka, a
longterm WCS research site in the Western Ghats that supports a high
abundance of tigers. Researchers collected 58 tiger scats following
rigorous protocols, then identified individual animals through their
DNA. Tiger populations were then estimated using sophisticated
computer models. These results were validated against camera trap
data, where individual tigers are photographed automatically and
identified by their unique stripe pattern. Camera-trapping is
considered the gold standard in tiger population estimation, but is
impractical in several areas where tiger densities are low or field
conditions too rugged.

"We see genetic sampling as a valuable additional tool for estimating
tiger abundance in places like the Russian Far East, Sunderban
mangrove swamps and dense rainforests of Southeast Asia where camera
trapping might be impractical due to various environmental and
logistical constraints," said Karanth.

WCS has been engaged in saving tigers in the Western Ghats in
association with the Indian government and several local conservation
partners for over two decades.

The Wildlife Conservation Society saves wildlife and wild places
worldwide. We do so through science, global conservation, education
and the management of the world's largest system of urban wildlife
parks, led by the flagship Bronx Zoo. Together these activities change
attitudes towards nature and help people imagine wildlife and humans
living in harmony. WCS is committed to this mission because it is
essential to the integrity of life on Earth. Visit: www.wcs.org