Protecting the vanishing Jaguars of Northwest Argentina

Timeframe: 2016 - 2019
Country/Region: Argentina, South America
Partner: WildCRU and Administración de Parques Nacionales (APN), Salta

The Yungas, an area in north-western Argentina, is a jaguar stronghold with potential to act as a source to recolonize other habitats to the east and south. The current distribution of jaguars in the Yungas ecoregion is of less than a fourth of the historical range and, although fully protected by law, the species is still highly threatened by persecution and by the degradation and fragmentation of forests. WildCRU has been active in the region since 2009 and is now aiming to implement key activities resulting from the Jaguar Strategic Conservation Plan for the Yungas produced in 2015.

With the support of Fondation Segré, the ultimate goal of this project is to promote better habitat protection and to reduce human-jaguar conflict by

  • Assisting government agencies and private land owners in the implementation of the Jaguar Strategic Conservation Plan for the Yungas
  • Alleviating the animosity among ranchers against jaguars through proactive mitigation approaches, leading to the reduction of livestock losses to predation
  • Increasing the knowledge of the status of jaguars and prey base populations in the Yungas of northwest Argentina
  • Increasing the awareness among local communities on the rapid loss of Yungas habitat and on the need for wildlife protection