The world's largest cat, the Amur tiger, is down to an effective wild population of fewer than 35 individuals, new research has found.
Although up to 500 of the big cats actually survive in the wild, the effective population is a measure of their genetic diversity. That in turn is a good predictor of the Amur tiger's chances of survival.
The results come from the most complete genetic survey yet of wild Amur tigers, the rarest subspecies of tiger.
link: BBC - Earth News - Amur tigers on 'genetic brink'
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