Extinct Javan tigers, which disappeared almost 50 years ago, could still be alive, researchers have claimed. And while their research has come under significant scientific scrutiny, there appears to be some kind of striped big cat prowling the island of Java.
Indonesia was once home to three tiger subspecies: Sumatran tigers (Panthera tigris sumatrae), Javan tigers (P. tigris sondaica), and Bali tigers (P. tigris balica), which lived on the islands of Sumatra, Java and Bali, respectively. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers both Javan tigers and Bali tigers to be extinct due to hunting and habitat loss, while Sumatran tigers are endangered.
