Endangered Siberian Tiger Killed in Russia's Primorsky Territory

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (Sputnik) - An endangered Siberian tiger has been killed in Russia's Primorsky Territory, the local branch of the Russian Interior Ministry said on Sunday.

"The police received a message that a carcass of a wild animal had been found in a forest expanse, 30 kilometres [18.6 miles] away from the Glubinnoe village in the Primorsky Territory's Krasnoarmeysky District. According to preliminary information, the male Amur tiger died from a gunshot wound", the branch said in a statement.

The authorities have opened a criminal investigation into the poaching of endangered species.

The site has been inspected by the police and ballistics as well as forensic veterinary analyses have been ordered.

Siberian tiger is one of the rarest wild cats in the world, which lives in Russia's Far East and northeastern China. Russia is systematically working on protecting the tigers along with another, even rarer species: the Amur leopard.