[10] The Sumatran tiger persists in small and fragmented populations across Sumatra, from sea level in the coastal lowland forest of Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park on the southeastern tip of Lampung Province to 3,200 m (10,500 ft) in mountain forests of Gunung Leuser National Park in Aceh Province.

[18] As of 2011, the tiger population in Kerinci Seblat National Park in central Sumatra comprised 165–190 individuals, which is more than anywhere else on the island.

[15] Sumatran tigers strongly prefer uncultivated forests and make little use of plantations of acacia and oil palm even if these are available.

The availability of adequate vegetation cover at the ground level serves as an environmental condition fundamentally needed by tigers regardless of the location.

Variables with strong impacts include settlement and encroachment within forest areas, logging, and the intensity of maintenance in acacia plantations.

[21] In the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, nine prey species larger than 1 kg (2.2 lb) of body weight were identified including great argus, pig-tailed macaque, Malayan porcupine, Malayan tapir, banded pig, greater and lesser mouse-deer, Indian muntjac, and Sambar deer.

[23] Poachers target tigers with wire snares, and they are also inadvertently caught in traps set by deer hunters and farmers attempting to control crop raids from wild boar.

[26] Sumatra's largest tiger population in Kerinci Seblat National Park is threatened by a high rate of deforestation in its outer regions.

Drivers are an unsustainable demand for natural resources created by a human population with the highest rate of growth in Indonesia, and a government initiative to increase tree-crop plantations and high-intensity commercial logging, which ultimately leads to forest fires.

The majority of the tigers found in the park were relocated to its center where conservation efforts are focused, but issues in the lowland hill forests of the outskirts remain.

[27] The expansion of plantations is increasing greenhouse gas emissions, playing a part in anthropogenic climate change, thus further adding to environmental pressures on endangered species.

[29] In 2006, wildlife markets were surveyed in 28 cities and nine seaports in seven Sumatran provinces; 33 of 326 retail outlets offered tiger parts like skins, canines, bones, and whiskers.

[30] In 2013–2014, Kerinci Seblat National Park experienced an upsurge in poaching, with the highest annual number of snare traps being removed for a patrol effort similar to previous years.

[31] In provincially-managed forests in Aceh province, Sumatran tigers are threatened by poaching due to insufficient or nonexistent ranger patrols.

[35] In 2007, the Indonesian Forestry Ministry and Safari Park established cooperation with the Australia Zoo for the conservation of Sumatran tigers and other endangered species.

[39] An interview survey among 600 consumers revealed that most were willing to pay consistently more for a "tiger-friendly" produced good if this product would be conducive to Sumatran tiger conservation.

[40] As of 2013, about 375 captive Sumatran tigers were listed in the global studbook and management plan, with 50 of them housed in 14 zoos in Australia and New Zealand.

Fourteen cubs showed congenital vestibular system dysfunctions such as ataxia, strabismus, nystagmus, head tilting and falling that resolved when they were two years old.