Spatial ecology of jaguars in Mexico: implications for conservation

Abstract

ContextMovement ecology contributes valuable information about animal interactions with the environment, and their responses to landscape-level anthropogenic impacts. Big cats are vulnerable to such changes, but the current deficit of information about home range movements, limits the scope of conservation initiatives. Objectives Describe the home range size, interactions, and differences between jaguar populations across its distribution in MexicoMethodsWe used 41,008 GPS-generated data points obtained from 28 tagged jaguars (Panthera onca) in five different states of Mexico over an 18-year period to describe home range size, differences between male and female territories, interactions in overlapping territories, and territory differences among populations. ResultsOur data shows that jaguar home range is smaller than tiger’s but larger than leopard’s. Male mean home range size (285.28 km2, n=13) tends to be larger than that of females (152.2 km2, n = 15), the difference was not statistically significant. While the home range for at least one male was 633.44 km2, contrasted with the much smaller 48.89 km2 for some female jaguars. Data of overlapping ranges showed 34.71% of female territory overlaps male territory, 32.46% of female territory is shared with other females, 18.97% of male territory is shared with other males, and only 16.89% male territory overlaps with female territory. ConclusionsThe absence of significant differences in home range sizes among the habitats suggest jaguar territory is not highly dependent on the type of habitat it occupies. Our findings of the spatial parameters of jaguar movements can be applied to identifying ecological corridors and the design of protected areas for this species.

Top predator ecology and conservation: Lesson from jaguars in southeastern Mexico

“…Our study revealed important information about jaguar ecology and behavior that will help in their management and conservation strategies and programs in the Yucatan Peninsula and southern Mexico, generally. The current population of about 2,000 jaguars in the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico is the largest in a region that extends into Central America (Ceballos et al, 2016;Ceballos et al, in press), and conservation efforts there are pivotal to ensuring the stability of their population and the ecological services they provide.…”

“…Landscape-level conservation strategies are needed to conserve jaguar populations. However, currently protected natural areas in the Yucatan Peninsula are discontinuous, and while most regions are still connected with corridors of forests and other natural ecosystems, these areas often lack official protection against deforestation (Ceballos et al, 2016;Ceballos et al, 2018). Together with other research, our study suggests that a major effort must be initiated to expand the size of the protected areas such as the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, create additional protected areas, and design and protect biological corridors (see also Ceballos et al, 2016Ceballos et al, , 2018.…”

“…However, currently protected natural areas in the Yucatan Peninsula are discontinuous, and while most regions are still connected with corridors of forests and other natural ecosystems, these areas often lack official protection against deforestation (Ceballos et al, 2016;Ceballos et al, 2018). Together with other research, our study suggests that a major effort must be initiated to expand the size of the protected areas such as the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, create additional protected areas, and design and protect biological corridors (see also Ceballos et al, 2016Ceballos et al, , 2018. Based on the results we presented here and the Mexico jaguar census data (Ceballos et al, in press), we are promoting a doubling of the size of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve to 1.4 million hectares, which will make it the largest tropical reserve in Mexico and Central America, and the creation of jaguar biological corridors in the Peninsula to maintain population connectivity.…”

“…However, its current distribution range has contracted between 48 and 55% of the historical value in the last century (de la Torre, González-Maya, et al, 2017;Sanderson et al, 2002) and their populations have experienced a severe decline since the 20th century (de la Torre, Núñez, & Medellín, 2017b;Medellín et al, 2016;Quigley et al, 2017;Roques et al, 2014;Saavedra-Mendoza, Cun, Horstman, Carabajo, & Alava, 2017;Sanderson et al, 2002). Habitat loss and fragmentation driven primarily by agriculture and cattle ranching encroachment, hunting, prey depletion, disease introduced by domestic animals, and human-jaguar conflicts are the main threats Ceballos, Zarza, Chávez, & González-Maya, 2016;De la Torre et al, 2017b;Medellín et al, 2016;Rodríguez-Soto et al, 2011;Saavedra-Mendoza et al, 2017).…”