Tigerfleet, a seafaring vessel painted with an image of the Amur tiger, was unveiled at the Livadiiski Shipyard in Yuzhno-Morskoi, Primorye Territory on 19 July. 

The refrigerated cargo ship Simfoniya of the Dobroflot group of companies, 103 metres long and 17 metres wide, has become the first vessel in the world painted with the image of the rare predator. The project was implemented by the Amur Tiger Centre and the Dobroflot Group.

Dobroflot General Director Alexander Yefremov said that Tigerfleet’s maiden voyage will be something special because the vessel portraying the largest cat on the planet is bound for the Arctic, where it will pass Polar bears, the largest land-based predators.

“We are supporting the Amur Tiger Centre because we think that unspoilt nature is Russia’s biggest asset. As fishermen we know this because fishing in the Russian waters we realise how important it is to preserve the environment and use the natural resources of our country rationally. We appreciate the Amur Tiger Centre’s efforts aimed at preserving the magnificent predator, which symbolises the unique Russian wild nature like no other animal,” the head of the company added.

According to the project organisers, the launch of the “tiger” cargo ship by Dobroflot will attract attention to the nature of the Far East and to the Amur tiger.

“We hope that as it navigates the seas the ship will tell the entire world about the Far East and its magnificent animal, the Amur tiger,” said Amur Tiger Centre general director Sergei Aramilev.