Thursday 22 December 2011

Jaguar photo shows conservation success in Bolivia

Credit: Daniel Alarcon
Jaguar photo shows conservation success in Bolivia

22-12-2011   ScienceDaily.com / Wildlife Conservation Society

A dramatic photo of a female jaguar and her two cubs near the Isoso Station of the Santa Cruz-Puerto Suarez Gas Pipeline in Kaa Iya National Park in Bolivia has just been released. The adult jaguar, nicknamed Kaaiyana, has been seen with her cubs in the area for over a month; though conservationists have confirmed she has been a resident in the vicinity for at least six years.


The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) just released a dramatic photo of a female jaguar and her two cubs near the Isoso Station of the Santa Cruz-Puerto Suarez Gas Pipeline in Kaa Iya National Park in Bolivia. The adult jaguar, nicknamed Kaaiyana, has been seen with her cubs in the area for over a month; though WCS conservationists have confirmed she has been a resident in the vicinity for at least six years.

"Kaaiyana's tolerance of observers is a testimony to the absence of hunters in this area, and her success as a mother means there is plenty of food for her and her cubs to eat," said Dr. John Polisar, Coordinator of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Jaguar Conservation Program.
At more than 13,200 square miles (34,400 square kilometers), Kaa Iya National Park is the largest protected area in Bolivia and safeguards the most expansive and best-conserved dry forest in the world. It is found in a transition zone between Chacoan and Chiquitano dry forest ecosystems and includes unique vegetation and rare wildlife such as giant armadillos, Chacoan titi monkeys, and Chacoan peccaries. The creation of Kaa Iya in 1995 marked the first time in South America that a protected area was established through the initiative of an indigenous group, the Guaraní-Isoceño people.

WCS has conducted extensive research in the area and estimates that at least 1,000 jaguars live in the Gran Chaco Jaguar Conservation Unit, a 47,000 square-mile (124,000 square kilometer) area spanning southern Bolivia and northern Paraguay. With support from the Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation, WCS is promoting conservation action across the Gran Chaco.

The construction of the 1,900-mile (3,100 kilometer) Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline that cuts across Kaa Iya National Park and the Isoso indigenous land required developing institutional alliances to minimize environmental impacts. With the participation of private energy companies, which make up Gas TransBoliviano (GTB), as well as the Isoso indigenous organization, and an independent member, the Kaa Iya Foundation was created in 2003 as a mechanism to deliver a match with WCS funds to conduct wildlife research and environmental education in the park, which is funded and managed by the Bolivian government.

Among the research efforts first supported by the foundation were jaguar surveys. Kaayiana was first detected by WCS researcher Dr. Andrew Noss at the Isoso site in 2005 with male jaguars, and again in 2006 with a cub. The Kaa Iya park guards work with GTB personnel to prevent illegal hunting and settlements along the right-of-way to the gas pipeline and ensure the protection of wildlife, including jaguar prey, in the park.

"The photographic histories of jaguars in the area by WCS and the reproductive success of this female are testimony that conservation efforts have been effective," said Julie Kunen, WCS Director of Latin America and Caribbean Programs.

Story Source:
The above story is based on materials provided by Wildlife Conservation Society. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

Wednesday 19 October 2011

Record numbers of jaguars in Bolivia

WCS Uncovers Record Number of Jaguars in Bolivia

19-10-2011   Wildlife Conservation Society


New digital cameras capture images of 19 individual jaguars i n Madidi National Park

NEW YORK (October 19, 2011) – In a new camera trap survey in the world’s most biologically diverse landscape, researchers for the Wildlife Conservation Society have identified more individual jaguars than ever before.

Using technology first adapted to identify tigers by stripe patterns, WCS conservationists have identified 19 individual jaguars by spot patterns in the rainforests of Bolivia, a record number for a single camera trap survey in the country.  The animals were identified from a total of 975 photographs, a record number of images due to the use of digital cameras as opposed to camera traps that use film.

The images come from the Alto Madidi and Alto Heath, a region at the headwaters of the Madidi and Heath Rivers inside Bolivia’s outstanding Madidi National Park. The survey also included Ixiamas Municipal Reserve, created following a previous WCS survey in 2004 along the Madidi River, which revealed a high abundance of jaguars and other species such as white-lipped peccaries, spider monkeys, and giant otters.

“We’re excited about the prospect of using these images to find out more about this elusive cat and its ecological needs,” said WCS Conservationist Dr. Robert Wallace. “The data gleaned from these images provide insights into the lives of individual jaguars and will help us generate a density estimate for the area.”

The study is noteworthy in its use of digital camera traps replacing the traditional film units used in the past. The cameras are strategically placed along pathways in the forest and especially the beaches of rivers and streams for weeks at a time, snapping pictures of animals that cross an infrared beam. Now, researchers returning to the traps can download the images in seconds, rather than waiting days for film to develop. Before embarking on second field trip to the even more remote Heath River, Bolivian jaguar field biologist Guido Ayala noted that “series of digital images also capture more data than traditional film.”

“The preliminary results of this new expedition underscore the importance of the Madidi landscape to jaguars and other charismatic rainforest species,” said Dr. Julie Kunen, Director of WCS’s Latin America and Caribbean Program. “Understanding the densities and ranging habits of jaguars is an important step in formulating effective management plans for what is arguably the most biodiverse landscape on the planet.”

Madidi National Park is one of the top tourist attractions in Bolivia and is the centerpiece of a continuous chain of six national protected areas in northwestern Bolivia and southeastern Peru, one of the largest such complexes in the world. WCS works to develop local capacity to conserve the landscape from a variety of threats, including the negative environmental impacts from poorly planned development such as road construction, hydroelectric projects, logging, and agricultural expansion. WCS also works to improve local livelihoods through community enterprises.

WCS has worked to protect jaguars for decades and launched the WCS Jaguar Conservation Program in 1999 to assess the needs of jaguars in the wild and to minimize potential conflicts with humans.
Contact:
John Delaney: (1-718-220-3275; jdelaney@wcs.org)
Stephen Sautner: (1-718-220-3682; ssautner@wcs.org)  

Monday 22 August 2011

In de ogen van de jaguar - Dans les yeux du jaguar

Dans les yeux du jaguar
 22-08-2011  linternaute.com, Frankrijk

                                             
Jaguar Suriname


Alors qu'il se déplaçait dans la forêt tropicale du Suriname, ce jaguar a été surpris par le déclenchement du piège photographique. Bien qu'il soit protégé et pratiquement en danger d'extinction, il est souvent apparu sur les clichés de l'étude. Pour le docteur Ahumada, l'ampleur de son travail ne doit pas seulement servir à obtenir des chiffres, mais aussi à protéger des espèces qui souffrent autant de la chasse que de la déforestation.

©  Conservation International Suriname / TEAM Network