Amy Jones
Breeding Machine
Elderly Indochinese tigress on a tiger farm, Thailand, 2023
Category - Humanity versus Nature
An elderly Indochinese tigress (Panthera tigris corbetti) leans her fragile body against the concrete wall of her enclosure on a tiger farm in Northern Thailand. For over 20 years, she has been confined in this cage and used as a breeding machine, producing cubs for industries ranging from tiger tourism to the illegal trade in skins, teeth, bones, claws and meat. This tigress, later named Salamas, was rescued from the farm alongside 14 other big cats by the NGO Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand (WFFT). Despite her frail and emaciated condition, Salamas survived the 12-hour journey to their 17-acre tiger sanctuary forest, where she was able to roam freely and experience grass beneath her paws and the warmth of the sun on her fur for the first time in two decades. Unfortunately, Salamas died nine months after being rescued. Demand for tiger tourism experiences and products has resulted in an estimated 1,700 tigers being held in factory-style tiger farms across Thailand. Less than 223 tigers remain in the wild in the country.
24-70 mm f/2.8 Lens - 1/250 sec at f/3.2 ISO 1400