Photo taken on Jan 15, 2022 shows Siberian tigers at the Siberian Tiger Park in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. Photo:Xinhua

With the continuous promotion of national protection projects, the forest ecological environment where tigers live has been restored and developed over the past 20 years, leading to Siberian tigers returning to their habitat in Northeast China, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee said during an interview via video link on Thursday.

"Siberian tigers have come back again. The scene of tigers roaring in the mountains has reappeared," said Yang Zhongqi, a CPPCC member and chief expert of the Chinese Academy of Forestry.

At the national parks in Northeast China's Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, the number of Siberian tigers has increased to 50, and 50 cubs have been discovered, Yang said, noting that  the return of Siberian tigers is clear evidence of the important achievements of ecological civilization construction in China.  

Siberian tigers are the largest and most beautiful tiger among the six existing tiger species in the world which is naturally distributed in the forests of Northeast China and Russia's far eastern regions. Due to excessive deforestation, mining and other human activities, the tigers' forest ecological environment has been greatly threatened, once resulting in the disappearance of the Siberian tiger in China, according to Yang.  

The country established the first five national parks in 2021 and will build 40 more parks, focusing on biodiversity and ecosystem conservation, Yang said.