Peter Jackson (27 January 1926 – 8 December 2016) was a British journalist, photographer and author, who took an interest in the conservation of tigers. In 1983 he became the Chair of the Cat Specialist Group, a position he held for 17 years.
Jackson worked with
Reuters and was the chief correspondent for the India bureau from 1954 to 1960 and from 1962 to 1970. His interest in tigers arose during his 18 years in India as a news correspondent, which led to him working with
WWF International's Operation Tiger, India's
Project Tiger
Project Tiger is a tiger conservation programme launched in April 1973 by the Government of India during Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's tenure. The project aims at ensuring a viable population of the Bengal tiger in its natural habitats, protecti ...
and conservation programs in Nepal, Thailand and Indonesia.
Jackson initially worked independently to promote tiger conservation. He was Chairman of the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Cat Specialist Group of the
Species Survival Commission (SSC) between 1983 and 2000, and subsequently became chairman emeritus. Jackson was a world-renowned
tiger conservation
The tiger is an iconic species. Tiger conservation attempts to prevent the animal from becoming extinct and preserving its natural habitat. This is one of the main objectives of the international animal conservation community. The Convention on Int ...
ist who was involved in tiger research and conservation efforts from the late 1960s.
In 2005 a newly established subspecies of the tiger,
Malayan tiger, was given the name ''Panthera tigris jacksoni'' in his honour.
Jackson co-authored and co-edited several publications on big cats and tigers, including ''Tiger!'' (
Boxtree 1994) with
Simon Barnes
Simon Barnes is an English journalist. He was Chief Sports Writer of ''The Times'' until 2014, and wrote a wildlife opinion column in the Saturday edition of the same newspaper. He has written three novels.
The son of Edward Barnes, a co-cre ...
in association with
Tigress Productions
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...
and
Meridian Broadcasting
ITV Meridian (previously Meridian Broadcasting) is the holder of the ITV franchise for the South and South East of England. The station was launched at 12:00 am on 1 January 1993, replacing previous broadcaster Television South, and is owned an ...
, ''Wild Cats: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan'' with Kristin Nowell (IUCN 1996) and ''Riding the Tiger: Tiger Conservation in Human Dominated Landscapes'' (
Cambridge University Press 1999).
Jackson died on 8 December 2016 at the age of 90.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Peter
1926 births
2016 deaths
People associated with the International Union for Conservation of Nature
British ecologists