A deputy to the National People's Congress said she was ready to pressure forestry authorities into revealing whether controversial photos of a critically endangered South China tiger were true or false.

"I hope the State Forestry Administration will push the forestry department in Shaanxi Province to give a detailed timetable as to when the results will be published," said Xu Yuanyuan, a deputy to the annual parliament session.

The tiger photos, allegedly taken by Shaanxi farmer Zhou Zhenglong in his home county of Zhenping, were published in October and were used by the provincial forestry department as proof that the rare tiger still existed in the wild. But Internet users accused Zhou of making the tiger images with digital software and local authorities of approving the photographs to bolster tourism.

In early February, the Shaanxi Forestry Department apologized for publicizing the photos, but said nothing about their authenticity.