Between 2001 and 2007, Humboldt State Biologists Emil McCain and Jack Childs followed, recorded and took video of 2 adult(and possibly a third) Jaguars in Southeastern Arizona..............These "Jags" were not dispersers from Mexico and were utilizing Arizona terrain on a year round basis.............Prospectors they were not,,,,,,,,,,,,,Southern Arizona seemingly is an important part of the Cats home range..........No breeding taking place at this time.............but there was a time 100 years ago when both Arizona and New Mexico had breeding populations................Can this take place again in 2011?

click to read full article by Emil McCain and Jack Childs

Recorded observations included:

-1359 km2 home ranges that spanned Mexico and Arizona

-both Jaguars scent marked(meaning they were defending their core territory and attempting to communicate with other Jaguars) their Arizona territory and used the region year round(they were not transients or dispersers)

-historically, there was a breeding population in Arizona up until 1910............Pre-Columbian USA range as far North as San Francisco and East across to Florida and the Carolinas

-The Secure Fence Act of 2006(ranging from Calif to Arizona so as to attempt to keep illegals from entering the USA)) is a key deterrent to Jags once again breeding in the USA

-One of the studied Jaguars was 6-7 years old and the 2nd Cat was a veteran 13 or 14 years of age(reaching near the the top of a Jaguar's lifespan in the wild)

-The Cats were using both desert habitat as well as Mountainous pine-oak woodlands as part of their home territory

-The overall suitable habitat for Jaguars in Arizona and New Mexico is greater in size and habitat quality than the occupied Jauguar region in Sonora, Meico( 200 km South of the USA border)

-Critical for unbrokern(no border fence)  and connective expanse of habitat in both Northern Mexico and Arizona/new Mexico if the jaguar is once again to breed in the USA