Land covers and their changes in the Amur tiger distribution regions in China and Russia

The Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) is one of the most endangered animals. Reasonable protective measures have been carried out by Russia to ensure a basically stable growth of the Amur tiger population since 1930s, and the population has grown to more than 500. There are only 20 Amur tigers in China for now. Global Land Cover 2000 and GlobCover 2009 were used as the data sources to analyze and investigate the land cover status of the Amur tiger distribution regions in China and Russia. The results showed: The human activity area was decreasing in the entire Amur tiger distribution region, and this situation was more remarkable in China. On the whole, Russia had higher forest coverage and better forest quality, leading to a certain difference between the habitats for the Amur tiger in China and Russia. A comparison of land covers of the Amur tiger distribution regions in China and Russia would provide scientific reference and basis for the conservation of the Amur tiger in China.