Endangered Jaguar- Monica Medor

Monica Medor

Recovery Plan for the Endangered Jaguar

www.zooborns.com

Description & Ecology of the Jaguar:

commons.wikimedia.org

• The jaguar the third largest feline species following the tiger and lion however it is the only and largest Panthera species native to the Americas.
• Panthera oncas are about 5-8 feet long from nose to tail and range from weighing 80 to 348 pounds. The average jaguar weighs about 120 pounds. Males are usually 10 to 30% larger than females. The jaguars have the strongest jaws and teeth of any American cats.
• In tropics the jaguars mate in any season, elsewhere they mate later in the year.
• Gestational period lasts from 95- 110 days. Male and female jaguar stay together during mating and pregnancy. Female gives birth to 1-4 cubs (usually 2). 
• Jaguars live to be about 20 years old in captivity and 11- 12 years in the wild. 
• Reach sexual maturity on average at age 3.

www.playbuzz.com

What Jaguars Eat?

• Exclusively carnivores- top of food chain.
• Opportunistic hunter- meaning it hunts and consumes prey relative to its abundance - eclectic diet.
• Generalist
• Hunt in high grass, plains, forests, and river banks.
• Large mammals such as: deer, cattle, monkeys, & sloths
• Reptiles such as: crocodiles, frogs, & turtles

en.wikipedia.org

Geographic & Population Changes:

• Jaguars historically ranged from Southern United States to central Argentina
• Could be found in CA, AZ, NM, TX, FL before 1940
• Today jaguar populations are only present in Mexico, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Guatemala, & Belize. 
• Populations of jaguars have been on a decline since the 1800s 
• Population densities have declined to about 1 - 11 jaguars per 40 miles

Listing Date & Type of Listing:

Date: March 28th, 1972

Type: Endangered

Where listed: Arizona, California, Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas, Mexico, Central America, & South America. 

Cause of Listing & Main Threats:

• Causes of listing:
• Number of jaguar populations have declined drastically within the last century
• 18,000 wild jaguars hunted each year in 1960's- 70's for beautiful coat
• Now only about 15,000 jaguars left in the whole world
• 3 Main Threats: Humans
1. Deforestation & habitat fragmentation for agriculture and human development 
2. Direct hunting by farmers who view jaguars as a threat 
3. Lack of natural prey from competition with humans for that prey 

Recovery Plan:

• Recovery outline: April 18th, 2012
• Prepared by: Jaguar Recovery Team & U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Recovery goal: Conserve & protect the jaguar so that its long-term survival is secured and it can be taken off the endangered and threatened species list. 

Approach: Summarize what's known about the status of jaguar and identify actions necessary to conserve them. 

Plan: 

1. Assess, protect, & restore sufficient habitat to support viable populations of jaguars.
2. Mediate effects of human population growth and development on jaguar survival & mortality where possible.
3. Reduce direct human-caused (i.e., illegal and legal killing) mortality of jaguars.
4. Reduce illegal hunting of jaguar prey and improve regulation of legal hunting. 
5. Maintain/ improve genetic fitness, demographic conditions, and health of the jaguar.
6. Assure the long-term viability of jaguar conservation through partnerships, the development and application of incentives for landowners, application of existing regulations, and public education and outreach
7. Practice adaptive management in which recovery is monitored and recovery tasks are revised by the USFWS in coordination with the Jaguar Recovery Team as new information becomes available.
8. Support international efforts to ascertain the status and conservation needs of the jaguar in the two recovery units.

Sources Used: 

http://www.jaguar.org.br/en/the-jaguar/ecology-and-conservation-of-the-jaguar-in-the-serra-da-capivara-and-serra-das-confuses-national-park/index.html

http://www.panthera.org/

http://www.edu.pe.ca/southernkings/jaguar.htm

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-7998.2006.00106.x/full

http://bigcatrescue.org/jaguar-facts/

http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/profile/speciesProfile.action?spcode=A040

http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/teacher_resources/best_place_species/current_top_10/jaguar.cfm

Thick-billed Parrot - Ramiro Molina

Thick-billed Parrot
By: Ramiro Molina

                             

Pic by: http://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/

      You Are What You Eat
                              

The thick-billed parrot is one of the world’s most beautiful birds.  Most of the birds body is a darkish green color[1]. It has red marks on the thighs and forehead as well as a patchy section on the shoulder[1]. One of its most beautiful traits is the yellow feathers it has under its wings which are most visible when it’s in flight.

     The last report of the thick-billed parrot in the US was in 1938 do to excessive hunting[1]. Its distribution in Mexico goes from Sonora and Chihuahua all the way to Michoacán and Jalisco[1]. It is estimated that of the active pairs of thick-billed parrots only 25% of them actually try to nest in order to reproduce[1].  Although it is not curtain how many really breed for sure. They tend to eat mostly pine seeds and occasionally acorns[3]. Pine seeds are their preferred meal as the spend most of their time on pine trees.

Pic by: http://www.preciselyparrots.com/showthread

Endangered?

The animal was first recognized as endangered in 1938[1].They have not been wiped out completely because hunting is not the best way to eliminate a species because they just                                                           become hard to find.

Pic by: http://www.birdphotos.com/
They are only in Mexico now!

Where Did they Go?

The main cause for the beautiful parrots to become enlisted was the destruction of their habitats[1]. They live in mature trees that usually tend to be cut down. It is said that only 1% of old grown trees that the parrots use for nesting are left today[1]. Making the active breeding pairs to have to go on a mission just to find the right tree for nesting. That’s not the only thing harming the thick-billed parrot; they have become pretty popular in the pet trade in Mexico[1]. People have begun to take the parrots eggs and sell them. Once they have become part of the pet trade and living in captivity, being released will be like letting out a chicken in the middle of 5 mountain lions. It is death for sure as the parrot never developed the skills to escape predation by other birds[1]. Giving them little hope to later reproduce.

Pic by: http://birdrecoveryinternational.com/

What do we do?!

The main goal of this recovering plan is to down list the thick-billed parrot from endangered to threatened[1]. Later in the future its goal will be to delist it but for the mean time its main goal is to just get it out of the critical danger zone[2]. We still do not have accurate and supportive populations size on these birds which will make it hard to completely delist them from the endanger species list. We want them back in America and in order to do so they need to recover in Mexico. In order to do this we need to act on the following:

1)    Conserving the breeding areas located in the northern states of Mexico

2)    Eliminating timber harvesting and tree clearing from thick-billed parrot habitats

3)    Formulate health assessment to better understand the impact of diseases

4)    Better understand the population size in order to better establish plan

5)    Strictly enforce all laws in protecting these birds from being hunted.

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[1]http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/Thick-billed Parrot

[2]http://www.birdrecoveryinternational.com/

[3]www.defenders.org/thick-billed-parrot/basic-facts

Fox News: The San Joaquin Kit Fox

McKenzie Nelson

San Joaquin Kit Fox

Vulpes macrotis mutica

The San Joaquin Kit Fox or Vulpes macrotis mutica, shown above, is the smallest fox in all of North America at about the size of a housecat. The adults have an average body length of 20 inches, weight of about five pounds, and height of up to 12 inches. They are lean with long legs and big ears. Their coats range from tan to buffy gray during the summer season, but in the winter their coat can change to a silvery grey. Their belly remains a white tone and their bushy tail is tipped black. This fox can have a life span of up to 7 years.

    

             This fox was previously found throughout the San Joaquin Valley in California, where its name derives from, but due to endangerment it is only found on the edges of the valley like the southern Kern County to Alameda, Contra Costa, and the western valley counties; Stanislaus eastern county; or a few populations within the valley itself. The image above shows the San Joaquin Kit Foxes range in the black. 

Kit Foxes have their mating season from December to March and the two parents will care for the 3-5 possible young pups for 4-5 months, which is when they typically can find their own food. These foxes live in their underground den, which help keep cool in the summer and warm in the winter. These dens are generally made by other animals, and even humans. They also change dens up to 25 times a year.

The San Joaquin Kit Fox is considered a nocturnal animal as most of their activities occur. The images below shows pups of the same family together.

      

            The San Joaquin Kit Fox is a member of the Canidae family like their fellow foxes, and dogs and wolves. There is not a definite population total, but the estimate is fewer than 7,000; which has drastically declined since the 1930’s when they were relatively common. Their population reflects the amount of rainfall each year, because the more rain the more grass

            The San Joaquin Kit Fox was placed on Endangered Species list on March 11, 1967. Then in 1971, the state of California listed them as a threatened animal. The urban development in the valley along with farmland and orchard development were the greatest catalyst to the endangerment. The other great threats were the predators of coyotes and red foxes, but these are natural not like the poison humans use which is accidentally harming the kit foxes. 

         

A family near their den shown above.  

San Joaquin Kit Fox diet consists of: rodents, black-tailed hares, desert cottontails, mice, kangaroo rats, squirrels, birds, and lizards. Kit foxes do not necessarily need to drink water consistently because they food source often provide enough water. 

The recovery plan for San Joaquin Kit Fox was created in September 9, 1930 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The first part of recovery criteria is protection of habitat from further human development and the implementation of appropriate habitat management plans for each species self-sustaining status of populations. Since habitat loss is one of the main causes existed lands are targeted for protection. The Tipton Kangaroo Rats in Fresno are the main food source for the San Joaquin Kit Fox and therefore protected for them.  It is listed under priority 2 of action plan and is estimated to cost about $ 17,253,500. It is estimated to take 20 years to recover. A San Joaquin Kit Fox sketch is shown to the left.

The San Joaquin Kit Fox has refuge in Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge, Grasslands Wildlife Management Area, Kern National Wildlife Refuge, Merced National Wildlife Refuge, Pixley National Wildlife Refuge, and San Luis National Wildlife Refuge.

Sources:

http://www.defenders.org/san-joaquin-kit-fox/basic-facts

http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/profile/speciesProfile?spcode=A006

https://www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/kitfox.html

Images are also found on Google along with sites above.