When this failed, Vitaly Saidov grabbed his gun and shot dead the predator to save himself and his family.

Almost poached to extinction, these pictures highlight the way the endangered species is recovering thanks to Russian preservation measures.

Shocking remains of nine beheaded brown bears slain and mutilated by poachers have been found by mushroom pickers in the Republic of Buryatia.

The Amur cubs were specially trained to cope after being raised in Zhelundinsky Nature Reserve.

Successful FSB and police operation sees birds of prey released into the wild before illegal export to Middle East.

Only 80 big cats remain in the wild, but this alpha male has been courting three eligible females.

Dozens of captive red and sika deer were released into the wild in a bid to coax the threatened Siberian tiger - the world's largest cat - back to China.

A man has been jailed for gunning down a protected Siberian tiger in the Far Eastern Russian region of Primoye.

The rare predator was caught after weeks of wandering into a village in Russian Far East.