Tigers used to be found in the wild in Singapore. They were sighted mostly in the areas of Bukit Timah, Choa Chu Kang and Pulau Ubin. They were a menace when large areas of Singapore's forests were cleared for roads and plantations. The intensive hunt for tigers which was accompanied by rewards led to their diminished numbers.
Tiger hunting became a rewarding sport offering money and adventure. Pits of 4 to 4.5 m were dug and traps set. Tigers caught were hauled out alive and put into strong rattan baskets which the tigers could not bite through. Indian convicts who were experts in hunting tigers were also employed by the government. With so many tigers killed, their numbers dwindled and they eventually perished. One French Canadian named Carrol made tiger hunting a business for himself. Occasional reports of tiger attacks were still heard towards the end of the 19th century; a man was killed by a tiger in Thomson Road in 1890 and two tigers shot at Bukit Timah in 1896. The last wild tiger, roaming in Choa Chu Kang area, was killed in the 1930s.
