The Journey to Save the Siberian Tiger from Extinction

Tigers Between Empires

The remarkable conservation story of one of the world’s most iconic animals 
 Deep in the snowy forests of Northeast Asia roams the majestic and revered Amur tigers, more popularly known as ‘The Siberian Tiger’. But in the final years of the Cold War, only a few hundred of these graceful animals remained in their home of the Amur River basin. As the Soviet Union fell, catastrophe arrived, with poaching and logging taking a fast, astonishing toll on an already vulnerable species. 
 Taking us on a journey through remote frozen landscapes, globally renowned conservationist Jonathan Slaght charts the incredible story of how Russian scientists and American conservationists came together to save these magnificent, solitary creatures. He retraces their steps to show how this dedicated, fearless coalition laid the foundations of new tiger research across Asia, transforming public opinion around tigers from something to be feared and hunted, to creatures we must protect. 
 Today, tigers occupy 7% of the lands they did 100 years ago, disappearing in the wild from Bali to Iran. In the ongoing global crisis of species destruction, Slaght shows us that the revival of the Amur tiger can bring us hope for the future: a model for how to live alongside, and revive, the natural world.

Jonathan C. Slaght is an expert on endangered species of north Asia. He is the Regional Director of Temperate Asia for the Wildlife Conservation Society and has spent nearly thirty years travelling to and living in the region. His work has featured in The New York Times, BBC World Service, The Guardian, Smithsonian and Audubon. Owls of the Eastern Ice, his first book, was named The Times Nature Book of the Year in 2020.

Deep in the forests of Northeast Asia roams the majestic and revered Amur tigers, more popularly known as ‘The Siberian Tiger’. But in the final years of the Cold War, only a few hundred of these graceful animals stepped quietly through the snow of the Amur River basin. As the Soviet Union fell, catastrophe arrived, with poaching and logging taking a fast, astonishing toll on an already vulnerable species. 
 
Taking us on a journey through remote frozen landscapes, globally renowned conservationist Jonathan Slaght charts the incredible story of how Russian scientists and American conservationists came together to save these magnificent, solitary creatures. He retraces their steps to show how this dedicated, fearless coalition laid the foundations of new tiger research across Asia, transforming public opinion around tigers from something to be feared and hunted, to creatures we must protect. 
 
Today, tigers occupy 7% of the lands they did 100 years ago, disappearing in the wild from Bali to Iran. In the ongoing global crisis of species destruction, Slaght shows us that the revival of the Amur tiger can bring us hope for the future: a model for how to live alongside, and revive, the natural world.

Jonathan C. Slaght

Slaght has a rare gift for startling evocations of the natural world...A refreshingly old-school, tautly strung adventure

Excellent...The brutality of human habitation is counterpoised with the brutality of the natural world. The reader becomes, like the author, "stunned by the quiet violence of this place."

This is a tale of man's endurance, determination and perseverance in search of this elusive and beautiful creature ... wonderful

The remarkable story of one man's heroic quest to save the astonishing fish owl. If only every endangered species had a guardian angel as impassioned, courageous and pragmatic as Jonathan Slaght.

A gripping account of the author's obsessive quest to save one of the world's most magnificent birds.

Dave Goulson, Professor of Biology at the University of Sussex and author of A Sting in the Tale

A vivid dispatch from the front line of conservation, Owls of the Eastern Ice is engrossing and uplifting; an inspiring story of vital work undertaken with utter determination in wild and distant places.

Horatio Clare, author of Orison for a Curlew

Slaght's story reveals the patience and determination of a true conservationist. And the ears and eyes of a poet. Above all, he makes the people, wildlife and landscape of the Russian Far East come alive for armchair travellers. I haven't enjoyed a book on remote Russia as much as this since Ian Frazier's Travels in Siberia

Sophy Roberts, author of The Lost Pianos of Siberia

True epic. A powerful, passionate and highly readable reflection on the wildness both inside us and out there in the forest.

A fascinating account of one man's quest to conserve the magnificent fish owl of Eastern Asia, this is a book that feels both urgent and relevant.

Christopher Skaife, author of The Ravenmaster

From the very first pages, Slaght grips readers with vivid language and tight storytelling ... The cast of characters he brings to life - both human and avian - illuminate the delicate symbiosis of the natural world and shed a welcome light on the remarkable creatures that are too little known. Top-notch nature writing in service of a magnificent, vulnerable creature.

A detailed and thrilling account of efforts to conserve an endangered species. . . Slaght evinces humor, tirelessness, and dedication in relating the hard and crucial work of conservation. Readers will be drawn to this exciting chronicle of science and adventure, a demonstration that wilderness can still be found.

A thoroughly engaging read which will appeal both to those specifically interested in owls, as well as those with a wider interest in the natural world. Will make armchair and keyboard conservationists envious and uncomfortable in equal measures

This is an epic tale of hangovers, violence and obsessive ornithology. It is a superb depiction of a far-flung corner of the world where bears, tigers and men battle with relentless environment and each other. It is a powerful antidote to saccharine nature writing; Slaght encounters such a host of pickled gritty characters that you could imagine the Coen brothers adapting it for the screen.

Wonderful... If [COP26 organisers] picked it up in the jet-lagged early hours they might find their dreams haunted, as mine have been, by huge, endangered owls swooping low through their subconscious, reminding them what survival might mean

The Quest to Find and Save the World's Largest Owl

The forests near to where Russia, China and North Korea meet in a tangle of barbed wire are the only place on earth where brown bears, leopards and tigers co-exist. They are also home to one of nature's rarest birds, the Blakiston's fish owl. A chance encounter with this huge, strange bird was to change wildlife researcher Jonathan Slaght's life beyond measure. During the following two decades, Slaght's quest to safeguard the elusive owl from extinction took him over thousands of miles of forbidding and threatened terrain. Thrilling and inspiring, his book is a beautifully crafted meditation on the natural world and what it means to devote one's career to a single pursuit.

Jonathan C. Slaght

Praise for Owls of the Eastern Ice

Slaght has a rare gift for startling evocations of the natural world...A refreshingly old-school, tautly strung adventure

Excellent...The brutality of human habitation is counterpoised with the brutality of the natural world. The reader becomes, like the author, "stunned by the quiet violence of this place."

This is a tale of man's endurance, determination and perseverance in search of this elusive and beautiful creature ... wonderful

Slaght has a rare gift for startling evocations of the natural world...A refreshingly old-school, tautly strung adventure

Excellent...The brutality of human habitation is counterpoised with the brutality of the natural world. The reader becomes, like the author, "stunned by the quiet violence of this place."

This is a tale of man's endurance, determination and perseverance in search of this elusive and beautiful creature ... wonderful

Slaght has a rare gift for startling evocations of the natural world...A refreshingly old-school, tautly strung adventure

Excellent...The brutality of human habitation is counterpoised with the brutality of the natural world. The reader becomes, like the author, "stunned by the quiet violence of this place."

This is a tale of man's endurance, determination and perseverance in search of this elusive and beautiful creature ... wonderful

Books by Jonathan C. Slaght

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