A large-scale international conference titled “Immediate issues in the Amur tiger conservation” was held at the Moscow Zoo from June 2 through 6, 2025. The conference brought together specialists of the conservation community from Russia and other countries. It was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation, employees of zoos in Russia and Belarus that keep or plan to keep Amur tigers, as well as experts from leading research institutes, who study Amur tigers in the wild.
Participants of the conference also included Sergey Aramilev, Director of the ANO Amur Tiger Center, and Vyacheslav Rozhnov, Head of the Laboratory of Behaviour and Behavioural Ecology of Mammals of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In addition, the directors of nature reserves engaged in the in situ conservation and study of the Amur tiger – Vyacheslav Kastrikin, Director of the Khingan Nature Reserve, and Anton Fetisov, Director of the Federal State Institution “Nature Reserves of Priamurye” – joined the inclusive discussion of current problems.
The conference participants discussed the most important issues of the conservation of the Amur tiger, including the behavior of wild tigers, standards for husbandry of these animals in zoos and rehabilitation centers, assessment of the welfare of tigers in zoo environment, animal training and environmental enrichment methods, veterinary aspects, requirements for the transportation of wild carnivores, legislative control over the breeding of tigers by private holders, and many other problems.
The conference was opened by Sergey Khlupin, the Head of the Moscow Zoo’s Research Department and Coordinator of EARAZA Progam for the Conservation and Breeding of Amur Tigers.
On the first day of the conference, its participants discussed joint objectives and plans for the conservation of this wild felid, including approaches to the resolution of conflicts between wild tigers and humans, and considered the role of strictly protected areas of the Far East of Russia. Reports on the preliminary results of the reintroduction of tigers in the Amur Region were presented to the conference participants and discussion on the Amur tiger population dynamics in Southwestern Primorye was held.
On the second day, conference participants visited the Moscow Zoo’s Centre for Reproduction of Rare Animal Species where they learned about housing conditions for Amur tigers and met with Tatiana Demina, Head of the Carnivore Department, and Dmitry Egorov, Senior Veterinarian of the Moscow Zoo and member of the Species Committee of the Progam for the Conservation and Breeding of Amur Tigers.
The third day of the conference included three thematic sessions. The first session was focused on the housing and husbandry of Amur tigers in captivity, problems associated with their breeding, requirements for the construction of tiger enclosures, and assessment of the tiger welfare. One of the reports was concentrated on the experience in holding educational events dedicated to this endangered felid included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and Red Book of the Russian Federation.
During the second session, experts discussed various infectious diseases of wild felids.
At the end of the third day of the conference, an expert discussion was held on the problems of the adaptation of Amur tigers from the wild to zoo conditions, which was led by Irina Alekseicheva, one of the most experienced zoologists of the Moscow Zoo.
“The conference “Immediate issues in the Amur tiger conservation” is the first event of this format organized and held by the Moscow zoo. The conference initiated a full-fledged dialogue between all interested parties. It brought together specialists of the conservation community from Russia and other countries,” said Svetalana Akulova, General Director of the Moscow Zoo, EARAZA and RUZA President.
It is planned to publish the proceedings of the conference that will include scientific reports and presentations of all speakers, as well as papers by other experts.
We thank all the participants of the conference and are looking forward to seeing you soon!
