The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival

by John Vaillant

  Arseniev and Dersu, c. 1907 (Courtesy of Amur Region Research Association)

  Nikolai Baikov with tiger, c. 1925 (Unknown)

  Yuri Yankovsky with tigers, c. 1930 (V. Yankovsky)

  Manchuria, 2008 (Author)

  Tiger wine, Harbin Tiger Park (Author)

  Sobolonye, with Sikhote-Alin Mountains in background (Author)

  Main Street, Krasny Yar (Author)

  Kung with ginseng plants (Author)

  Luchegorsk (Sasha Snow)

  Markov’s cabin (Y. Trush)

  Markov’s grave (Author)

  Yuri Trush, 2004 (Sasha Snow)

  Ivan Dunkai (Sasha Snow)

  Dmitri Pikunov (Author)

  Danila Zaitsev (Author)

  Vladimir Schetinin, c. 1997 (David Higgs)

  Evgeny Smirnoff (Author)

  Vladimir Shibnev (Author)

  Kapchiony (Author)

  Yuri Pionka on patrol, Bikin River (David Higgs)

  Anatoli Khobitnov (A. Khobitnov)

  Pionka, Shibnev, and Gorborukov, taken from a video shot moments after the killing of the tiger, December 21, 1997 (Y. Trush)

  Tiger tracks (John Goodrich)

  Author’s hand with female tiger track (Author)

  THIS IS A BORZOI BOOK

  PUBLISHED BY ALFRED A. KNOPF

  AND ALFRED A. KNOPF CANADA

  Copyright © 2010 by John Vaillant

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and in Canada by Alfred A. Knopf Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

  www.aaknopf.com

  www.randomhouse.ca

  Knopf, Borzoi Books, and the colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Knopf Canada and colophon are registered trademarks.

  Permission to reprint previously published material may be found following the bibliography.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Vaillant, John.

  The tiger : a true story of vengeance and survival / by John

  Vaillant.—1st ed.

  p. cm.

  “A Borzoi Book.”

  eISBN: 978-0-307-59379-5

  1. Tiger hunting—Russia—Russian far east. 2. Tiger

  attacks—Russia far east. I. Title.

  SK305.T5V35 2010

  599.7560957′7—dc22 2010004068

  Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

  Vaillant, John (John H.)

  The tiger : a true story of vengeance and survival / John Vaillant.

  1. Trush, Yuri—Travel—Russia (Federation)—Primorskii krai.

  2. Markov, Vladimir, d. 1997. 3. Tiger hunting—Russia (Federation)—Primorskii krai. 4. Hunters—Russia (Federation)—Primorskii krai. 5. Primorskii krai (Russia)—Description and travel. I. Title.

  SK305.T5V34 2010 799.2′775609577 C2009-906953-9

  v3.0