Iconic Tigers Roar Back From The Brink At Crucial Time

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Hopeful news for one of the planet's most iconic endangered species: the population of tigers in India is up more than 30 percent in just three years.

India's Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar announced this week that a 2014 census found 2,226 tigers across the country, a dramatic rise from the 1,706 tigers counted in 2011. He described the numbers as a "huge success story."

"While the tiger population is falling in the world, it is rising in India. It is great news," Javadekar said, as reported by the Times of India.

A report from the Ministry cites tiger conservation initiatives for the turnaround, including measures to curb poaching and mitigate human-wildlife conflicts. In some regions, whole villages located near tiger reserves have agreed to relocate to give the species more room to propagate.

This increase couldn't come at a more crucial time. In 2008, tigers in India had reached an all-time low of 1,411, raising fears that the species could be wiped out entirely within a generation.

While the rise comes as a heartening sign that conservation efforts are effective, the number of tigers in India, now home to 70 percent of all tigers on Earth, is still a far cry from historic levels. A century ago, an estimated 100,000 tigers lived in India. The number plummeted in the decades that followed due to habitat loss and rampant poaching.