Sumatran tiger in zoo dies of old age

MEDAN, North Sumatra: A Sumatran tiger that had lived in Medan Zoo for 15 years was found dead last week.

The 15-year-old tiger, named Tele, died of old age and not because of lack of food, insisted Adios Gusri, the head of PD Pembangunan, the municipal company that oversees the running of the zoo. There are still five tigers left in the zoo.

There are about 400 Sumatran tigers throughout the world today, many in zoos in Europe, Australia and North America. The largest populations in the wild are found in national parks, forest reserves and tiger conservation zones in Indonesia. -- JP