Argentina celebrates first jaguar births in the wild in 70 years

Buenos Aires, Jul 21 (EFE).- Two cubs spotted by concealed cameras at Ibera National Park in Corrientes province represent Argentina’s first known births of jaguars in the wild in seven decades, the Rewilding Argentina Foundation said Thursday.

The cubs are the offspring of Arami, a female product of the breeding program at Ibera, and Jatobazinho, a rescued male from rural Brazil.

“If both cubs survive, something we will know in the coming weeks, the population of Ibera will include 10 free jaguars, which is very significant considering that in the entire Argentine Chaco only around 15 individuals are estimated to survive,” the foundation’s head of conservation, Sebastian Di Martino, said.

Tracking data emitted by Arami’s collar showed that she was spending most of her time in a single location, suggesting that she might have given birth, project coordinator Magali Longo said.

And the cameras hidden throughout the park captured images of Arami carrying the cubs in her mouth.

The births are an “excellent signal for the project that seeks to reverse the extinction of this species and fuels the hope of regenerating a healthy population of jaguars in Esteros del Ibera,” the foundation said.

The initiative is a cooperate effort of the foundation, the provincial government and the National Parks Administration.

Rewilding estimates the total population of jaguars in Argentina at no more than 250. EFE rgm/dr