Here's some unusually good news for nature lovers: tiger populations in India made a 30% leap in 2014. According to BBC, the country's latest tiger census shows that the species' population has risen from 1,706 in 2011 to 2,226 in 2014.

India is estimated to be home to about 70% of the world's tigers, which is why this news is so optimistic. Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar told journalists in Delhi, "Never before has such an exercise been taken on such a massive scale where we have unique photographs of 80% of India's tigers... While the tiger population is falling in the world, it is rising in India. This is great news."

Tigers have always been poached for their fur, and their bodies have often been used as ingredients for the purposes of traditional Asian medicine. The Guardian reports that India has been able to repel poaching by creating reserves staffed by government employees.

In some cases, entire villages have been relocated in order to make room for endangered species. The Times of India reports that the Navegaon (Ramdegi) village in Tadoba was completely relocated, allowing for more than 400 acres of farm land and village area to become a safe haven for wild animals.

Virendra Tiwari, chief conservator of forests (CCF) and field director of the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, stated, "Before Navegaon was shifted, there were sporadic sightings of leopards and tigers near the village. However, post relocation, carnivores and even herbivores are regularly seen in the 400 acre area that has become inviolate."

However, India will have to continue to work hard in order to keep its tigers safe. Debbie Banks, head of the Tiger Campaign at the Environmental Investigation Agency, stated, "While this is good news from India, I don't think anyone is sitting back and saying 'we've won.' The demand within China for skins to decorate homes and bones for tiger bone wine all continue. And so it's a constant battle."