‘America’s great cat’: Scientists plan to reintroduce extinct Jaguars into the US

A group of scientists recently said that now is the time to talk about reintroducing the extinct jaguars - Panthera onca - into the United States. In a study published in the journal Conservation Science and Practice, the authors provided a prospective framework for this effort and described it as “righting a wrong” done to “America’s Great Cat” in the Southwest more than 50 years ago. They informed that the jaguars lived for hundreds of years in the central mountains of Arizona and New Mexico, however, were driven to local extinction by the mid-20th century, in part because of killing by government hunters.

In the United States, at present, the species has been reduced to a few male cats that seem to be dispersing north from an established but threatened population in Sonora, Mexico, despite the burgeoning border infrastructure and associated activity, the researchers noted. They said that a previous study had suggested that an area in Central Arizona and New Mexico spanning 82,000 square kilometres can provide a potentially suitable habitat for 90 to 150 jaguars. Further, they added that this area was not considered in the 2018 US Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Plan for the jaguar instead it considered only habitat south of Interstate Highway 10 and therefore concluded there was habitat for only six jaguars in the US. 

'Reintroduction could enhance economy'

However, now, the recent study concluded that the reintroduction of jaguars should be examined as a viable alternative. The authors - a diverse set of scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society, Center for Landscape Conservation, Defenders of Wildlife, Wildlands Network, Pace University, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, Life Net Nature, and the Center for Biological Diversity - believe that restoring jaguars can be a net benefit to people, including culture and local economies and nature. They also believe that the reintroduction of jaguars would represent the return of an original part of the US fauna. 

Eric Sanderson, WCS Senior Conservation Ecologist and lead author of the study, said, “The jaguar lived in these mountains long before Americans did. If done collaboratively, reintroduction could enhance the economy of this region and the ecology of this incredible part of jaguar range”. 

The authors of the study noted some key aspects of the reintroduction effort to be discussed with relevant officials and the public in central Arizona and New Mexico. They noted that the reintroduction would replace a historic member of the species assemblage of the region. They said that today we have tools to facilitate coexistence and avoid and mitigate conflict.

"This represents a turning point for this iconic wild cat, identifying a path forward for the restoration of the jaguar to its historic range in the United States," said Sharon Wilcox Ph.D., Texas Representative for Defenders of Wildlife. "It should serve as the starting point for a renewed conversation among stakeholders”. 

The authors said that restoring jaguars to the northmost portions of their historic range is an issue of importance for both the US and Mexico. They added that their paper provides an initial step for both countries to draft together a roadmap of what the major rewilding effort may look like. “They have a storied and vital place in our canyons and forests, so we should plan an intelligent and humane reintroduction program,” they added. 

IMAGE: Unsplash