Ecotourism and Education: Win-Win Solution for Pantanal Jaguars and Ranchers

Conflicts between cattle ranchers and jaguars are among the biggest threats to the big cat population in the Brazilian Pantanal, experts warn.

February 23, 2023 by Mongabay



Examining the torn remains of a calf, Paul Raad saw evidence of a jaguar attack. Most big cats grip the throat to bring down their prey, but jaguars prefer to bite the nape, he said as he placed a camera trap next to the carcass.

“It’s like a detective job. Every time a cow is killed, I check the body,” the veterinarian and conservationist told Mongabay. “If it’s from a jaguar, I’ll put a camera trap there.”

Camera traps are used to identify and monitor jaguars. Understanding predator-prey dynamics can help create solutions to protect the jaguar population in the Brazilian Pantanal while also assisting the pantaneiros (Pantanal cattle farmers), who struggle to protect their livelihoods.

Four-fifths of the Pantanal’s vast wetland is divided into unfenced private ranches where cattle roam freely in the same habitat as the jaguars. The overlap means jaguars inevitably hunt cattle, which make up nearly a third of their diet, a 2010 study found. It causes economic losses for local farmers and can consequently prompt retaliatory jaguar culls.

More:
https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/ecotourism-and-education-win-win-solution-for-pantanal-jaguars-and-ranchers



Pantanal jaguars