The wild tiger is among the world’s most endangered species, pushed to the brink of extinction in large part by poachers who are killing the animals for profit. The illicit tiger parts trade is worth billions of dollars and nowhere is it more active than in China, the world’s leading consumer of illegal wildlife. Nearly two decades ago, the Chinese government instituted a series of conservation efforts ostensibly aimed at saving the tiger from what appeared to be its imminent demise, but correspondent Adam Yamaguchi goes undercover and exposes flagrant and widespread violation of China’s tiger trade laws. He investigates China’s lucrative black market for tigers and tiger parts, including the business of Asian zoos and breeding centers. In this dispatch from the field, he tapes his own raw reaction to seeing first-hand a massive tiger farm in China where over 1,500 animals are being held — likely until they die, when their parts are far more valuable.

Also see Adam Yamaguchi’s previous piece Sushi to Slaughter : the Bluefin Tuna.

Tiger Farms with Adam Yamaguchi Trailer

Tiger vs Chicken – Adam Yamaguchi visits an Asian zoo, where a nervous tourist foists upon him a snack for a captive tiger: a live chicken (graphic images)

Inside a tiger farm

Behind the scenes of Tiger Farms