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Yang Gao, deputy magistrate of Zhenping County, Shaanxi Province, is in charge of agriculture and forestry. He said that the photos have indeed been processed, but there is no doubt that there are South China tigers in the area.
The netizen concluded: "The wild South China tiger may really exist, but the photo is absolutely fake."
Zhou Zhenglong shows his photos of the South China Tiger.
Is there a South China Tiger in Shaanxi?
Netizens pointed out that the news photos were fake, and the reporter verified that "the photos were processed, and the tiger tracks were true."
■ New Express reporter Deng Yifu
According to the survey, there are only more than 20 wild South China tigers in the world, and more than 50 of them are kept in zoos in Suzhou and Shanghai. A South China tiger has not been seen in Shaanxi Province for more than 40 years since the villagers in Foping, Shaanxi Province killed a South China tiger in 1964. A young tiger found in a forest farm in Hubei Province in 1983 was the last time that a wild South China tiger was found in China, and it has been 24 years since now.
This is a photo of the South China Tiger taken by Zhou Zhenglong, a resident of Zhenping County, Shaanxi Province. Appraised by experts, the photos are true. This proves that the South China Tiger is not extinct in China, and there is probably a small breeding population of wild South China Tiger. The wild South China tiger was once thought to be basically extinct and has not appeared again for 24 years. In 1996, the South China Tiger was listed as the most endangered species and the first tiger species in need of protection by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
But it is also this photo that was questioned by netizens for fraud, which triggered the suspicion of wild South China tigers.
News photos through PS?
On October 15th, a post appeared in Tianya Community’s posted area, "Shaanxi South China Tiger is fake news again? ",the post owner" Party Command Gun "mentioned in the article that the news of" South China Tiger in Shaanxi "was reprinted by many media, which also attracted many voices of doubt. In the questioning voice, it is mainly aimed at six doubts about the tiger picture, and points out that the tiger picture with this news is suspected of PS, and asks netizens to help identify it.
The post was immediately welcomed by netizens, and many netizens came up with "housekeeping skills" to help identify it, which was very lively for a time.
As far as photos are concerned, netizens seem to have golden eyes. The netizen "the gun that went off accidentally" said: "I think the light is very unreasonable. The place where the tiger stays should be lush (as can be seen from the picture). Where is it possible that the sun shines down and the light on the tiger is poor?" The netizen "dressed as a tiger" said more directly: "The color of the tiger looks a little fake, and many PS pictures are like this."
The netizen "drifting north" teased: "What kind of camera is this? The definition of the tiger is inconsistent with that of the leaves with the same focal length next to it. It is estimated that when taking pictures of the tiger, there is a photography assistant in front of the tiger side holding a reflector to fill the light. "
The netizen "about the bricklayer" observed: "This tiger has no evil eyes and is not wild. It is estimated that it was taken in the circus." Netizen "Underwater Star" also feels the same way: "This tiger is really hygienic. It must take a bath every day, and its hair under its belly is as white as a Persian cat. When I was a child, I saw the South China Tiger in the circus. To be honest, my belly is really not so white. "
As a result, netizens came to the conclusion: "Wild South China tigers may really exist, but the photos are absolutely fake."
In an interview with reporters, the author of the original post "Party Command Gun" said: "The reason why I question it is because I really can’t convince people according to the information published in the news."
Netizens find "motivation" for "counterfeiting"
If it is really a fraud, what is the motive?
Netizen "hblmj501" said: "I want to be crazy about tigers. Is this also a fake?" Finding the South China Tiger is no small matter. According to reports, the local authorities have been organizing tiger-hunting operations, and they have also found relevant signs, except for the "hard evidence" of photos, so the netizen "loves the mountains and loves beautiful people" speculated: "This scientific research activity lasted for a long time, although a lot of indirect evidence of the existence of South China tigers was found, but there is no direct image evidence, so I am unwilling. Fake these photos, you will definitely get a lot of money and invest more manpower to continue looking for wild South China tigers, and you will definitely find a real South China tiger and turn the fake into reality. " He called it "the most white lie".
"Please ask Brother Wu to go to the appraisal." Netizen "Whisperwhisperer" joked to invite Wu Song to the mountain, but I’m afraid Wu Song may not have this luck. "If Wu Song stays there for a few days and can come back, it will prove to be fake news." The netizen "Little Dragon Girl" strongly appealed: "Give full play to the spirit of pursuing, and suggest that the landlord personally go to southern Shaanxi to investigate the local villagers, government officials and parties. It is best to’ catch the tiger and bring it to justice’, and then make a detailed report to netizens, which will surely uncover the truth."
The netizen "the old horse knows the way" is more realistic: "Don’t just look at the pictures, didn’t you say that you also collected hair and feces? Moreover, there are photo films. Just looking at a reprinted photo says that people are fake news. Isn’t this nonsense? "
Party language
Shooting horror
Zhou Zhenglong, 52, was a good hunter, and later cut paint as his main business. In 2006, Zhou Zhenglong, a villager from Wencai Village, Chengguan Town, Zhenping County, became the guide of the South China Tiger Investigation Team, which was jointly composed of Shaanxi Provincial Forestry Department and Zhenping County Government.
During his long life in the mountainous area, Zhou Zhenglong met the tiger by chance many times. In two surveys last summer and winter, he repeatedly stressed that there were definitely tigers here, but the team members told him that unless you photographed tigers in the wild, and what was photographed by a digital camera was not counted.
In the early morning of October 3, Zhou Zhenglong went up the mountain again. This time, he hung two cameras around his neck, one is the old Great Wall film camera, and the other is a brand-new digital SLR camera (Canon EOS400D digital camera and 18-55mm lens). The machine was borrowed from his relative Xie Kunyuan, who works in the county.
About three o’clock in the afternoon, he suddenly found a cave on the hillside in the distance, and a yellow mass lying nearby looked like a tiger. He looked intently, yes, it must be a tiger!
Zhou Zhenglong, lying in the bushes, raised his camera and kept alternately pressing the shutters of the two cameras, while slowly approaching.
Clap clap, 1 of "pa", eyes suddenly lit up, it turned out that the dark light in the forest triggered the electronic flash. When he saw the tiger move, he immediately dodged and rolled behind the rock, conveniently throwing the camera in a conspicuous position on the ground.
He thought that even if he was eaten by a tiger, these pictures could be preserved and easily found.
At the moment, there was a loud whistling in my ear. When he came to his senses, he found that there was already no movement around him. He ran down the mountain quickly and went to the county seat to find his relative Xie Kunyuan.
Reporter connection
Yang Gao, deputy county magistrate: The photos have indeed been processed.
Yesterday, the reporter contacted Yang Gao, the deputy magistrate in charge of agriculture and forestry in Zhenping County, Shaanxi Province. Yang Gao said that the photos were indeed processed, but the fact that there were South China tigers in the local area was beyond doubt.
Reporter (hereinafter referred to as "Ji"): What do you think of netizens questioning the discovery of South China Tiger in Zhenping County?
Yang Gao (hereinafter referred to as "Yang"): As early as July 6th, we held the Evaluation Meeting on the Investigation Report of Wild South China Tigers in Zhenping County, Shaanxi Province. Professor Wang Tingzheng from Shaanxi Normal University, Professor Liu Shifeng from Northwest University, and researcher Xu Qingtao from Shaanxi Institute of Zoology attended the meeting. Experts decided that the discovery of South China tigers in Zhenping County was informative and had sufficient evidence, including the discovery of hair and feces of South China tigers. At the beginning of October, Zhou Zhenglong, a local farmer, took photos of the South China Tiger, which only added another piece of evidence. Therefore, we can’t look at photos separately, but look at them together.
Reporter: Do you think Zhenping County has the conditions for the survival of South China tigers?
Yang: Tiger tracks have also been found in neighboring areas, such as Chongqing, while the forest coverage in Zhenping County is 86%, and the animal structure is also very rich, such as wild boar, goats and other common foods for tigers are everywhere. In the seventies and eighties of last century, we often heard the news of tigers coming and going here. In 1991, a farmer hit a tiger.
Reporter: Now netizens think that photos are suspected of fraud. What is the actual situation?
Yang: The photo you saw was indeed processed. It was taken with a digital camera and then processed. The actual situation is that Zhou Zhenglong was carrying two cameras, one is a digital camera and the other is a film camera, and they both took photos. Zhou Zhenglong also showed the film negatives to relevant experts, but he refused to provide photos negatives, because it is said that he heard that the discovery of the South China Tiger would reward 500,000 yuan, and he wanted to get more bonuses, so he only handed in digital photos. Later, Zhou Zhenglong also took us to the scene where the South China tiger was found. We did see the tiger’s footprints and the bones left by a wild boar.
Reporter: What reward does Zhou Zhenglong receive now?
Yang: The Provincial Forestry Department rewarded him with 20,000 yuan, and the county is also studying how to reward him.
Reporter: What kind of person is Zhou Zhenglong?
Yang: In popular terms, he is quite "cow", bold and smart. He has beaten hundreds of animals in the past two years, but he is also honest and believes that he will not make fakes. After I learned that someone doubted his photo, I also called him and said to him, "Tell the truth, is there anything wrong with this?" Zhou Zhenglong said, "I guarantee it with my head."
Reporter: If you want to untie the bell, you have to tie the bell. Let Zhou Zhenglong take out the negative, so you can look at it squarely.
Yang: We’re working on this. The negatives are with relatives in Zhou Zhenglong. He’s on a business trip. The two cameras used by Zhou Zhenglong to take pictures were also lent to him by this relative, who is regarded as Zhou Zhenglong’s staff officer.
Reporter: Now Shaanxi stipulates that hunting activities should be stopped in the place where the South China tiger was found. Is it related to the publication of photos?
Yang: This rule was decided before the photos were taken.
Editor: Wang Yuxi