Saikhan, a male tiger released into the wild after rehabilitation, travelled to China for one week and then returned to the Far Eastern taiga. Researchers at the Amur Tiger Centre monitor the predator’s movements using the GPS collar fitted to the animal upon his release.

According to the obtained data, the tiger swam across the Amur River on 22 October 2018 to China. "Fortunately, Saikhan did not disturb the peace during this week and returned safely to Russia; he is now wandering to the places he inhabited for the past three months," said Sergei Aramilev, general director of the Amur Tiger Centre.

According to researchers, Saikhan killed a ram; he was also spotted by local farmers who recorded the wild cat, and then left a track 10 metres away from a dog but did not lay a paw on it. "This looks like model behaviour," Sergei Aramilev noted jokingly.

In recent years, about 40 percent of the animals inhabiting the Russia-China border have actively moved around these areas. Between 24 and 26 October 2018, an international forum on conserving Amur tigers and Far Eastern leopards took place in Harbin. Researchers from Russia, China and other countries exchanged their experience in protecting wild animals, paying particular attention to cross-border cooperation in preserving the Amur tiger and the Far Eastern leopard.

Currently, China is working to establish the Northeast National Park of Tiger and Leopard, which borders Land of the Leopard National Park. "It is important to reach agreements on joint conservation and research activities. We invited our colleagues from China to visit Land of the Leopard and further discuss ways to cooperate and introduce these proposals to our respective governments," said Viktor Bardyuk, director of Land of the Leopard National Park.