One of the biggest challenges for the conservation of large endangered animals is to replicate the animal's living conditions in captivity. This is considered the main barrier for the reproduction of animals under care.
Researchers from USP (University of São Paulo), campus of Ribeirão Preto, Ufscar (Federal University of São Carlos), UFTM (Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro) and Associação Mata Ciliar, in Jundiaí (SP), were able to register for the first time a very -successful reproduction of a pair of jaguars and the parental care of the mother for the cubs.
The study took place at Associação Mata Ciliar, where the two jaguars had been since 2015, when they were taken after being rescued by IBAMA agents. Chemistry happened between the two animals and, after a few weeks of living together, the pregnancy of Tabatinga (the female's name) was confirmed. The cubs, one male and one female, were born in 2018.
Translated by Cassy Dias