The Guardian World · Aug 11, 2026

The return of the caspian tiger: how a species feared extinct has come back to Kazakhstan

With this release, Kazakhstan became the first country to restore its tiger range after they had been thought extinct, with the last reliable sighting in the country recorded more than 70 years ago. Umit – a wild-caught female tiger transported from the Russian far east – will be joined by more big cats in the coming years, with plans to establish a self-sustaining population of about 50.