a majestic visitor

Jaguar Selfies!

Much of the wildlife of Runaway creek are sneaky and rarely seen by humans, but occasionally, we get a peek into their lives thanks to amazing trail camera technology.  Runaway Creek has several trail cameras strategically placed around the reserve to try and capture what the human eye cannot.   With these cameras we can capture images of birds, bats, tapirs, puma, ocelot and even the elusive jaguar!

On May 5, one of our cameras got quite a show!  A familiar jaguar spent 9 hours and 3 minutes setting off a camera several times.

Jaguars are the third largest big cat after tigers and lions and are the largest cats in the Americas. The population of jaguars in the Americas is estimated to be around 64,000 individuals comprised of 34 jaguar subpopulations of which 33 are threatened or in danger of extinction. These solitary animals once lived from the Grand Canyon all the way to southern Argentina but now they have been almost eliminated from the United States and are only said to range as far as the northern tip of Argentina. Preserving the jaguar’s diminishing habitat is one of the many reasons that the Foundation for Wildlife Conservation’s role in protecting Runaway Creek is so important.