Cambodia is moving forward with plans to reintroduce tigers into the Cardamom Mountains, a vast protected rainforest in the southwest of the country, despite concerns from local residents and some experts about the feasibility and safety of the project. The initiative involves transferring tigers from India, which is home to over 3,600 big cats, to an area where the species was declared extinct more than a decade ago.
The Cardamom Mountains, which span over a million hectares, are considered a key conservation area. Proponents of the reintroduction argue it could restore the region’s role as habitat for an apex predator, improve ecological balance, and potentially boost eco-tourism. Jimmy Borah of the Indian environmental group Aaranyak, who is advising the Cambodian government, emphasized the symbolic importance of the effort as a message to the global community that tiger rewilding is achievable.
However, the project faces significant challenges. Poaching has severely depleted wildlife populations in the area, raising questions about whether there is enough prey to sustain the newly reintroduced tigers. Deforestation, driven in part by dam construction, continues to degrade the habitat. Local villagers, some living close to the proposed release site, voiced concerns about safety and the lack of prior consultation. Pan Sok, a resident who recalls a fatal tiger attack on a family member over 30 years ago, expressed strong opposition, citing personal experience and fears of renewed danger.
Indian tiger biologist Ullas Karanth, who once conducted tiger surveys in Cambodia, described the extinction of the native tiger population and their prey as “extinction as we watched.” He questioned whether the Cardamoms’ wildlife has recovered sufficiently to support tigers, predicting that the project may be “doomed” if prey scarcity leads to starvation. Conversely, Borah noted that recent camera trap footage indicates an initial prey base adequate for the first arrivals, stressing the conservation message as a priority over short-term prey concerns.
The project had initially targeted 2024 for the introduction of tigers, but delays have occurred. The suspension of an associated carbon credit scheme has affected funding, while habitat concerns have prompted adjustments. A new government-approved roadmap proposes beginning the reintroduction next year, though financial support is still being negotiated. The tigers will first be placed in a 40-hectare enclosed area several kilometers from the nearest main road near the village of Lin Meng Ma, who expressed worry about the project’s proximity to her home and questioned the nearly $43 million projected cost of the initiative through 2030.
Many local residents remain ambivalent, believing the tigers will remain captive rather than roam freely. The plan, however, calls for releasing them into the wild after a period of acclimatization. Some skepticism surrounds studies suggesting economic gains from tourism, given the dense forest’s unsuitability for conventional safari-style encounters.
Environmentalists, such as Tom Gray of WWF’s global tiger program, view the reintroduction as a potentially important step to curb unsustainable development in the Cardamoms and protect critical forest landscapes. He also suggested that food shortages might be mitigated by supplementary prey releases, a strategy used in neighboring Thailand. While the immediate vicinity of the release site has few homes, villages, roads, and development projects lie within the broader area that tigers could eventually inhabit.
As Cambodia prepares to welcome tigers back to its forests, the project underscores the complex balance between conservation ambitions, local community concerns, and ecological realities.