In this interview with @ConCriterio, our colleague Rony García-Anleu, Director of Biological Research at WCS Guatemala, explains how long-term biological monitoring in the Maya Biosphere Reserve (MBR) has become an essential strategy to understand and protect this emblematic species—and, along with it, all the biodiversity that depends on these ecosystems.
Through permanent camera-trap stations and genetic analysis of scat, we’ve learned that:
In places like Mirador–Río Azul and the forest concessions of Petén, jaguar populations remain stable.
In Laguna del Tigre National Park, the highest jaguar density in the MBR has been recorded, thanks to the variety of habitats and the abundance of prey such as white-lipped and collared peccaries, as well as armadillos.
Jaguars travel across large distances: the same male has been recorded in both Guatemala and Belize, mating with females in both countries. These cats know no borders: they depend on connected landscapes to survive.
Females with cubs stay with them for two years; during that time they do not reproduce, making every safe space where they can raise their young even more valuable.
⚠️ However, not all the news is good. Threats such as illegal cattle ranching, wildlife hunting, and the screw-worm parasite persist. As prey populations decline, so do the chances of jaguar survival. In some areas of the MBR, hunting is more intense and directly impacts the predator-prey balance.
🌎 Since the creation of the MBR in 1990, there were fears of rapid forest loss. Today, more than two decades of monitoring show us a mixed picture: stability in some sites, degradation in others. But also one certainty: where there are jaguars and their prey, there are living and resilient forests.