America: WE HAVE JAGUARS!
Ok, one. We have one. That we know of. So cool though, right?!
His name is El Jefe and he stars in a new film called:
EL JEFE IS A BIG CAT AND YOU DO NOT WANT TO FIGHT HIM.
I made that name up. I know you're surprised.
The Center for Biological Diversity released a statement regarding the footage:
Captured on remote sensor cameras in the Santa Rita Mountains just outside Tucson, the dramatic footage provides a glimpse of the secretive life of one of nature’s most majestic and charismatic creatures. This is the first ever publicly released video of the jaguar, and it comes at a critical point in this cat’s conservation.
Through the late 1800s, jaguars roamed freely from northern Argentina up into Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The U.S. population was essentially pushed out of their habitat by early American West settlers. Later, they were hunted by ranchers and farmers protecting their livelihood from the predator.
National Geographic explains:
By the time Arizona's last legally hunted jaguars were shot in the 1960s, there were no known females left in the U.S. The species is now listed as near-threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Jaguars are the third biggest cat in the world, behind lions and tigers and bears. BEARS AREN'T CATS, THAT WAS A JOKE.
If your kids have any upcoming science/nature projects, El Jefe would be a great topic that I'm sure you'd enjoy studying since -- straight talk -- you'll be the one actually doing the work.
