What was the other name for the extinct tiger subspecies, which inhabited the sparse forests and riverine corridors west and south of the Caspian Sea, from Turkey, Mesopotamia, Iran and the Caucasus, that has a project reestablishing populations of the Siberian tiger by introducing them as replacements to the extinct tiger?
Caspian tiger The Caspian tiger ("Panthera tigris virgata") is an extinct tiger subspecies, which inhabited the sparse forests and riverine corridors west and south of the Caspian Sea, from Turkey, Mesopotamia, Iran and the Caucasus, through Central Asia to the Takla Makan desert of Xinjiang in China, until the end of the 20th century. Depending on the region, it was also called Hyrcanian tiger, Turanian tiger, Persian tiger, and "Babre Mazandaran" (Persian: ‎ ‎ , Tiger of Mazandaran). It was one of the largest big cats to have ever lived and was described as being intermediate in size between Siberian and Bengal tigers.
Southeastern Anatolia Project The Southeastern Anatolia Project (Turkish: "Güneydoğu Anadolu Projesi" , GAP) is a multi-sector integrated regional development project based on the concept of sustainable development for the 9 million people (2005) living in the Southeastern Anatolia region of Turkey. GAP's basic aim is to eliminate regional development disparities by raising incomes and living standards and to contribute to the national development targets of social stability and economic growth by enhancing the productive and employment generating capacity of the rural sector. The total cost of the project is over 100 billion Turkish lira (TL) (2017 adjusted price), of which 30.6 billion TL of this investment was realized at the end of 2010. The real investment (corrected value) was 72.6% for the end of 2010. The project area covers nine provinces (Adıyaman, Batman, Diyarbakır, Gaziantep, Kilis, Siirt, Şanlıurfa, Mardin, and Şırnak) which are located in the basins of the Euphrates and Tigris and in Upper Mesopotamia.