Caught on Tape: Rare Jaguar Sighting in Oaxaca Marisa Krystian - IBTimes.com
go to original May 11, 2012

Mexican authorities this week confirmed that a jaguar has been spotted for the first time near Mitla, which lays approximately 40 kilometres (24 miles) from the southern Oaxaca state capital of Oaxaca City.

According to Mexico's National Commission for Protected Areas (CONANP), the jaguar caught on camera is the first one confirmed to exist in the area of San Pablo Villa de Mitla, which is part of the 4,900-hectare Yagul and Mitla Natural Monument.

Pavel Palacios Chavez, an administrator at Yagul and Mitla Natural Monument, said the jaguar likely migrated through heavily forested and mountainous areas from Oaxaca's Sierra Juarez mountain range, which is part of the larger Sierra Madre de Oaxaca.

"There hadn't been a sighting in this area of the central valleys until now. It's a high-altitude zone that is connected to the Sierra Juarez. We believe that it's this connectivity between the forests of Sierra Juarez and the forests of this part of the valley that has facilitated the transfer of this species," he said.

Authorities detected the jaguar - North America's largest feline - using remote cameras which were left attached to trees and other vegetation, allowing conservationists to observe the movement of animals throughout the night.

Pumas were also observed through the cameras, as well as white-tailed deer.

The jaguar is the third largest feline after tigers and lions. Jaguar populations have rapidly dwindled in the Americas because of hunting as well as deforestation of many of their traditional habitats.

Jaguars are particularly significant in Mexico, where the animal was an important feature of pre-Columbian mythology for many cultures. The Mayan culture of southern Mexico and Central America, for example, had several deities and gods which were represented by jaguar figures, and were particularly associated with the underworld.

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