Tigers in Singapore

By Marsita Omar written on 2006-12-12
National Library Board Singapore

Comments on article: InfopediaTalk

Tigers used to be found in the wild in Singapore. They were sighted mostly in the areas of Bukit Timah, Choa Chu Kang and Pulau Ubin. They were a menace when large areas of Singapore's forests were cleared for roads and plantations.  The intensive hunt for tigers which was accompanied by rewards led to their diminished numbers. 

Early Records
The first record of tigers is found in the first newspaper in Singapore, the Singapore Chronicle, dated 8 September 1831. There it was reported that a Chinaman was killed by a tiger and that probably the same tiger killed a native shortly after that.  Singapore then was still covered by thick virgin jungle and it was home to pigs and deer which were food to tigers. The island formed part of a larger hunting ground for these tigers. Being good swimmers, tigers had been known to swim cross the Straits of Johore into Singapore. 

When the cultivation of gambier and pepper took off in the 1840s, plantations extended beyond town and encroached on virgin jungle.  By the late 1840s, the number of plantations peaked at 600.  Chinese plantation coolies became easy targets for tigers.  Reports of encounters with tigers increased in the 1830s and 1840s. In 1835, G. D. Coleman and his convict workers were laying out a new road through a swamp in the jungle near town when they were attacked though no one was killed. 

Ravages by tigers grew so intense that it was said by the middle of the 19th century, tigers claimed one life a day. This could be doubted although not improbable. At first, estate owners tried to cover up the truth but by mid-1840s they gave up. In 1859, one village near Bukit Timah was abandoned due to too many attacks. Bukit Timah was nicknamed "A tiger Resort". It was reported that 390 lives were killed in 1857. It was likely that the actual number was more as many tiger attacks went unreported.

Containing the Tiger Menace
The government gave a reward of $20 for every tiger killed but the increasing number of casualties led to the reward being increased to $50 then to $100. Tiger hunting became a rewarding sport offering money and adventure. Pits of 4 to 4.5 m were dug and traps set. Tigers caught were hauled out alive and put into strong rattan baskets which the tigers could not bite through. Indian convicts who were experts in hunting tigers were also employed by the government.  With so many tigers killed, their numbers dwindled and they eventually perished. One French Canadian named Carrol made tiger hunting a business for himself. Occasional reports of tiger attacks were still heard towards the end of the 19th century; a man was killed by a tiger in Thomson Road in 1890 and two tigers shot at Bukit Timah in 1896. The last wild tiger, roaming in Choa Chu Kang area, was killed in the 1930s.


References
Buckley, C. B. (1984). An anecdotal history of old times in Singapore 1819-1867 (pp. 219-222). Singapore: Oxford University Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 BUC).

Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. (1989). Singapore a country study (p. 21). Washington D.C: The Division.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57.57 SIN)

Liu, G. (1999). Singapore: A pictorial history 1819-2000 (pp. 79, 151 & 230-231). National Heritage Board and Editions Didier Millet.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 LIU-[HIS])

Makepeace, W., Brooke, G.E.,& Braddel, R.St.J. (Eds.). (1991). One hundred years of Singapore (pp. 367-371). Singapore: Oxford University Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 ONE).

Moore, D. (1969). The first 150 years of Singapore (pp. 220-221). Singapore: Donald Moore Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 MOO)

Singapore Chronicles: A special commemorative history of Singapore (pp. 142-145). (1995).  Hong Kong: Illustrated Magazine.  
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 SIN)

Turnbull, C.M. (1989). A history of Singapore: 1819-1988 (pp. 43-44). Singapore: Oxford University Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 TUR)

Tyres, R. K. (1993). Ray Tyres' Singapore: Then and now (p. 210). Singapore: Landmark Books.
(Call no. : RSING 959.57 TYE)

Urban Redevelopment Authority. (1993). Bukit Timah Planning Area: Planning report 1993 (p. 8). Singapore Urban Redevelopment Authority.
(Call no. : 711.4095957 SIN)

Urban Redevelopment Authority. (1996). Choa Chu Kang Planning Area: Planning report 1996 (p. 8) Singapore Urban Redevelopment Authority.
(Call no. : 711.4095957 SIN)



The information in this article is valid as at 2007 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.



Subject
Nature>>Animals
Tigers--Singapore
Science and technology>>Zoology>>Endangered animals

Librarian Recommendations
>> Bukit Timah
>> Choa Chu Kang
>> Pulau Ubin


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