International Tiger Day

The International Tiger Day is observed every year on July 29 across the world in order to raise awareness for tiger conservation.

Founded in 2010, at the Saint Petersburg Tiger Summit in Russia after it was registered that 97 percent of tigers had disappeared, the day promotes a global system for protecting the natural habitats of tigers. The International Tiger Day is observed by several international organizations including – the World Wide Fund for Nature, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, and the Smithsonian Institution.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, India is home to over half of the world’s wild tigers – 2,226. It reported that while Malaysia’s tigers are critically endangered with as few as 250 remaining, Indonesia’s wild tigers are now found solely on the island of Sumatra. The organization has also called for urgent action to protect the tigers.

Cat of the Month ~ July 2022

White Tiger

Photograph Source: a-panache.com

 

Globally, the day is celebrated by holding conferences, seminars, and discussions on saving the tigers.

Meanwhile, according to the National Tiger Conservation Authority, there were 1,059 tiger deaths in India since 2012 with Madhya Pradesh recording the highest number of deaths.

Congress on its official Twitter handle on Friday has urged people to come together and “enhance efforts for conservation of the endangered species.”

Article Source: extract written by Manjiri Sachin Chitre of the Hindustani Times Newspaper.


Did you know that this year is ‘The Chinese year of the Water Tiger’ and that it began on February 1st and will last until January 21st of 2023 when the Year of the Black Rabbit will begin. ‘Tiger’ is the third of the twelve Chinese zodiac signs, and its corresponding European Horoscope Zodiac sign is Aquarius.


 

Cat Soohorang of PyeongChang

Cat of the Month ~ February 2018

Soohorang the cat is the Olympic Winter Games mascot. He is the Official mascot of the 2018 Winter Olympics (9-25 Feb) and of the Paralympics (9-18 Mar) in PyeongChang, South Korea.

Soohorang, mascot of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games
Soohorang, the mascot of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games
Photograph: © www.olympic.org

Soohorang, the Olympic mascot, made his debut in July 2017, during Olympic events in both Seoul and PyeongChang. Gunilla Lindberg, Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission for the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, said of choosing a white tiger to be the 2018 Olympic mascot,

It’s a beautiful animal, strongly associated with Korean culture. It also symbolises the close link between the Olympic Winter Games and the natural environment. I’m sure the new mascot will be very popular with Koreans and people around the world.

Athletes who win medals at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics are honored in two separate ceremonies, according to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The first one happens directly after the event, and is when the athletes get their stuffed tiger….”instead of flowers, medalists are being given a doll of the Games’ mascot Soohorang.” The origin of the motif is the famous (and endangered) South Korean white tiger. The white tiger has been long considered Korea’s guardian animal.

“Sooho”, meaning protection in Korean, symbolises the protection offered to the athletes, spectators and other participants of the 2018 Games.

“Rang” comes from the middle letter of “Ho-rang-i”, the Korean word for “tiger,” and is also the last letter of “Jeong-seon A-ri-rang”,

a cherished traditional folk song of Gangwon Province, where the Games will be held.

Soohorang not only has a challenging spirit and passion, but is also a trustworthy friend who protects the athletes, spectators and all the participants of the Olympic Games.

Well worth being cat of the month then Eh Osc?

And just to round this all off nicely (we hope) here are a few more images relating to our friendly cat Soohorang.

A Korean White Tiger
A real majestic white tiger
Photograph: © Koreaboo
Red Gerard the slopestyle Gold medallist, holds his own Soohorang doll
Red Gerard the Slopestyle Gold medallist holds his own Soohorang doll ~ And what a run it was!
Photograph: © www.olympic.org
Brad Barket/Getty Images
A tourist needs a selfie with the said cat
Photograph: © Brad Barket/Getty Images
soohorang and bandabi
Soohorang with his companion Bandabi (Mascot of the PyeongChang Paralympics)
Photograph: © www.olympic.org

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