Race against time to avoid the extinction of the Ocelot, there are only 100 specimens left on Earth
This is also the case for the Ocelot, a wild feline inhabiting Central America. A project to reintroduce the species was started after the population dropped to just 100 specimens.
Several animals in the world are at risk of extinction and the cause, in various forms, is always human beings. From fishing to uncontrolled hunting, to the appropriation of their habitat and to accidents, many species need to be protected and, fortunately, there are those who think of them with protection and reintroduction projects.
This is also the case for the Ocelot, a wild feline inhabiting Central America, for which a project to reintroduce the species was started after the population dropped to just 100 specimens. It is one of the animals at highest risk of extinction on the entire planet.
The most beautiful feline in the rainforest
Silently, it leaps up the mossy trunk of a tree, passing hand-sized, deep red flowers. It dodges branches and vines and dashes across a babbling stream. Like a shadow, it wanders through the rainforest, hardly recognisable in the darkness.
Only its yellow eyes sometimes flash in the moonlight, which faintly penetrates the thick canopy of leaves. The ocelot is making a nocturnal foray into the Amazon rainforest. It is smaller than a jaguar, with a slightly thinner body, but in common with the latter it has yellow fur with black spots.
The ocelot is a nocturnal and solitary animal. It hunts on land and also in water as it preys on rodents, fish and even small caimans.
Characteristics of the ocelot
The ocelot is one of the largest of the so-called small felines, which also include the lynx and wild cats. Ocelots populate the American continent and are found between the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and the Andes in Argentina.
Most of these specimens live in the rainforests, between Brazil and Bolivia, where large portions of tropical forest still exist today. In most cases we are talking about areas that are difficult to reach even for humans.
It is precisely within these dense forests that the Ocelot finds its natural habitat, where it can hunt undisturbed, finding a wide variety of prey.
Project to reintroduce the Ocelot is underway in Texas
In 1982 the “U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service" classified the Ocelot as an endangered species. In its case it was hunting and car accidents that reduced its population so much. However, a joint project has now begun between universities, research centres, government agencies and the inhabitants, to reintroduce the feline and bring the population back to at least 200 specimens by 2033.
To help these animals have healthy offspring that have greater genetic heterogeneity (genetic diversity) than that of their parents, various local authorities such as the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Duquense University, the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute and the Predator Conservation association have started breeding the specimens present in Texas through exchanges between ranches and various US zoos.
The Ocelots are hosted by the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge which, in addition to having a greater number of specimens, also has more space, useful for allowing the ocelots to reproduce and grow with a bit of privacy, without being constantly under the lenses of researchers.
Objective of the project
According to the promoters of the project, this breeding campaign will not be at risk due to the fault of the farmers given that these felids, unlike other animals, do not hunt livestock but limit themselves to hunting rodents and birds, including some species that cause some damage to the countryside cultivated by farmers.
The first goal of this project, which has an indefinite duration, is to obtain at least 100 more adult animals within Texas by 2030 and to redistribute them within the state starting from the same year.
To do this, the conservation biologists involved will also have to work together with ecologists and botanists to identify the areas most suitable for this reintroduction.
The Texas state government has decided to contribute to the campaign by allocating various funds for the study and protection of the ocelot. For the first time in this century it is also thinking of purchasing specimens from other refuges and farms in the United States, to accelerate the early stages of the project.