DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Police in Bangladesh have shot dead six suspected tiger poachers in the world's largest mangrove forest after a new survey found that the population of the big cats has dropped alarmingly.
Local police official Harendranath Sarker says authorities recovered the bodies of the suspects following a gunfight Sunday with a gang in the Sundarbans mangrove forest, home to critically endangered Royal Bengal tigers.
The survey has found that the forest has only 106 tigers — down from 440 a decade ago.
Sarker said they found the skins of three adult tigers and seized firearms from the suspects.
The 10,000-square-kilometer (3,860-square-mile) forest straddles Bangladesh and India, and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
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