The Stellar Steller Sea Lion By Emily O'Brien
(Eumetopias jubatus)

Description and Ecology
The steller sea lion belongs to the pinniped family, which includes marine mammals with front and back flippers, such as walruses, seals, and other sea lions. Steller seals are the largest otariids, or eared seal, with males that can grow up to 11 feet and 2,500 pounds. Their size and light coloring help distinguish them from their close cousin and neighbor, the California sea lion. Also unlike the California sea lion, mature males lack a visible sagittal crest on their heads.
They are a K-selected species, with females reaching sexual maturity at 3-7 years and rarely giving birth to more than one pup. The mothers can take 1-3 years to nurse each pup, and spend equal amounts of time hunting and caring for their young. These pups can grow up and live up to 20 to 30 years old. They prey upon a variety of seafood, such as fish, cephalopods, and occasionally even true seals.
Geographic and Population Changes and Listing
The ESA first listed the steller sea lion’s entire species as threatened in 1990. In 1997, they split them into two distinct population segments for conservation management purposes: the Western DPS on the Alaskan coast west of the 144° W longitude line and the Eastern DPS on the Pacific coast of the US east of that line. Due to sharp population declines, they listed the Western DPS as endangered while the Eastern DPS remained threatened.
The first population count of the Western DPS steller sea lions in 1956-1960 found about 140,000 sea lions in the area. The mid to late 1970s observed their first major population decline, as their numbers dropped down to 110,000. From there the population fell 75% from 1976 to 1990, with the estimated number of steller sea lions at 30,525, and then another 40% between 1991 and 2001, with an average annual decline of 5.4%. Today there are about 46,000 steller sea lions in the Western DPS, but population rates have remained stable.

Thankfully the Eastern DPS has fared much better since its initial listing. Over the past 40 years the population has been increasing 3% per year, with some locations doubling in individuals between 1979 and 2002. The population eventually reached 52,000, and in October 2013 the ESA deemed the Eastern DPS as recovered, then delisted it from its threatened status as a result.
Main Threats
The steller sea lion faces many of the same threats other marine mammals do, such as entanglement in fishing nets and debris, pollution, habitat degradation, and lack of prey. The fishing industry has been a large component in these threats, competing with the sea lions for fish and occasionally killing them so they won’t interfere with fishing activities. Steller sea lions can also become bycatch, animals that accidentally get injured by fishing nets and gear. They also suffer from pollution in the ocean, either choking on or becoming trapped on garbage they mistake for fish.

Recovery Plan
The 2008 steller sea lion recovery plan is primarily managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service and comprises of multiple parts. The first part focuses on monitoring and recording populations, using tagging and tracking techniques to keep track of them. The next part involves monitoring prey availability and accessibility for sea lions, and finding ways to make prey more plentiful for them. This part includes fishing regulations such as catch limits, regulated zones, and management plans. The third part deals with public human interaction, and plans on further regulating human waste in the ocean, punishing shootings against sea lions more harshly, and recording the different sorts of take in different areas. The fourth part focuses on evaluating steller sea lions’ causes of death, to see if there are additional factors such as disease which can be threatening the population. Next, the plan focuses on coastal cleanups and reducing ocean debris. Finally, the last part implements a plan to monitor and categorize the Eastern DPS population to determine if it was fit for delisting.

What Can You Do?
You may think that there isn’t much you can do for a population that lives near the Alaskan coasts, but there are many things the average American citizen can do for steller sea lions. For example, you can check to see what kinds of fish you eat and learn how they’re caught or harvested to see if they are sustainably acquired. You can also properly dispose of plastic waste and garbage to ensure that it won’t end up in the ocean, where it can ensnare or choke a sea lion. Finally, you can donate to marine research and protection agencies which conduct research for steller sea lions or house injured animals, such as the Marine Mammal Center.
Sources:
http://ecos.fws.gov/roar/pub/planImplementationStatus.action?documentId=1002749&entityId=7115
http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=stellersealion.main
http://www.marinemammalcenter.org/education/marine-mammal-information/pinnipeds/steller-sea-lion/

Mikki Okamoto

New Mexico Meadow Jumping Mouse

Zapus hudsonius luteus

Endangered as of June 10, 2014

Mice? EEK! There are two sides to the mice story in our modern media driven world. People either fear them, heaping them in with thieving rats, or think of them as the innocent cheese loving fairytale helpers shown in Cinderella and other works of literature. But how much do we really know about our small furry housemates?

The New Mexico Meadow Jumping Mouse is an example of a wild mouse that doesn’t hide in your home and steal your crumbs. It is endemic to Arizona, New Mexico, and a section of southern Colorado. The jumping mouse has a colorful appearance consisting of a grayish-brown back, yellowish-brown sides, and a white underside. They vary in size of around 7.4 to 10 inches in total length, including a long, bicolored tail usually 5.1 inches long. The jumping mouse is usually nocturnal, but can also be diurnal.

The New Mexico Jumping Mouse is solely active during the growing season of the grasses on which it is dependent. During the growing season, the jumping mouse collects fat reserves through the consumption of seeds. The rest of the year, generally around 9 months, the jumping mouse spends in hibernation.

The jumping mouse is endangered mainly because it is a specialist species. Its nests are located in areas consisting of dry soils, but it also requires zones of thick vegetation adjacent to streams, of an elevation of roughly 8,000 feet. The frequently overlapping home ranges of the jumping mouse vary between 0.37 and 2.7 acres. That is quite a particular set of requirements for our furry-legged friend.

            Having come to this conclusion, the New Mexico jumping mouse was placed on the endangered species list in June 2014. Along with addressing all the habitat problems stated above, support of the New Mexico Jumping mouse is made even more difficult by the fact that it is difficult to capture any for research due to their wariness of traps commonly used for small mammals.

            Unfortunately the distribution and abundance of New Mexico jumping mice has declined significantly. This recent decline began in the late 1980s. As of 2005 there were only 29 documented populations, located in Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. These populations are scattered throughout 8 conservation areas. To add to the problems of the jumping mouse, the majority of the remaining populations live in habitats that are too small to support their populations. The populations themselves are isolated and separated by great distances, making conservation efforts to combine habitats to save the dwindling populations impossible. As of 2011, 11 of the 29 populations’ habitats have been compromised due to grazing, wildfire, water shortages, and post-fire flooding. This all boils down to the same sad truth. At this moment the jumping mouse simply does not have the numbers or distribution to reach the necessary levels of genetic and ecological diversity to viably regain their non-endangered status.

The main sources of habitat loss have been accounted to grazing and lack of water, however very few recovery actions have been put into place since 2005, with even fewer of them being effective. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge has made attempts to clear areas and repair their water resources in order to expand and restore jumping mouse habitats along the Riverside Canal. Recently, the Santa Fe National Forest has proposed two projects to cap excess livestock, which has lead to expanding jumping mouse habitats. Connecting current populations is impossible, so another focus of the plan is to create multiple populations surrounding each of the individual populations. Historically a number of local populations were most likely located along the same stream bed, providing for easier mobility and therefore genetic diversity, which is vitally important for the longevity of a species.

            Protecting habitats while the species begins to recover is key to the success of this plan, which will require communication and cooperation between the federal, state, and local governments as well as private entities so they may address the problems of habitat loss. Emergency procedures must be devised to bring mice into captivity if natural disasters persist to the point of mortal peril. This requires monitoring of current populations, which can help obtain more information about the mouse itself. Investigating genetic diversity of populations to find long-term management strategies is another necessity. Taking the time to fully understand whether captive breeding programs would truly benefit the jumping mouse is another mattered that needs to be reconciled.

So what can you do? Spread awareness. Rally for the cause to gain money and support from localities to preserve their habitats and the land they live on, and fund, or even begin efforts to find alternative places for them to live, or how to aid them in increasing reproduction and survival rates. Whether you think of mice as adorable crumb stealers, or vermin is immaterial. It boils down to the same fact that regardless of your opinion they have as much right to be here as we do, and we are responsible to do all we can to save them as it is almost entirely our fault their habitat is being destroyed.

Bibliography

1.http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/Recovery%20Outline%20NM%20Meadow%20Jumping%20Mouse%20R2%20ES%20Signed_3.pdf

2.http://ecos.fws.gov/roar/pub/planImplementationStatus.action?documentId=1007807&entityId=5210

3.https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/06/20/2013-14366/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-proposed-designation-of-critical-habitat-for-the-new

4.http://dailysignal.com/2014/07/16/new-mexicos-mouse-war-escalates/

5.http://www.wildearthguardians.org/site/PageServer?pagename=species_mammals_NM_meadow_jumping_mouse#.VmU66GQrKfS

Bay Checkerspot Butterfly

By Carla Pangan

Status: 
The bay checkerspot butterfly was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1987 and continues to be listed as such today. 

About:

The bay checkerspot butterfly is a medium sized butterfly, distinguishable by the black bands along the veins of the wings’ upper surface. Contrasting these bands are bright yellow, red, and white spots dispersed throughout its wingspan of 2 inches. Bay checkerspot butterflies can lay up to 250 eggs during March and April which they lay on host plants pictured below. After about 10 days, the eggs hatch. The next 2 weeks are devoted to the larvae’s development and continuous shedding. Before the host plants dry from summer’s heat, larvae go under rocks or cracks in the soil to diapause in the summer until the end of summer. In the fall, larvae continue to feed and eventually develop into adults with lifespans of 10 days. 

               owl's clover                                                     dwarf plantain

Changes in Geography and Population:

Bay Checkerspot butterfly distribution

Dependent on plants that thrive in Serpentine soil, bay checkerspot butterflies are mostly found in California where this low-nutrient soil is abundant. Historically, Bay Checkerspot butterflies are known to inhabit various areas around the San Francisco Bay from the San Jose mountains to the San Francisco Peninsula. However, population levels of these butterflies hit a record low in the ‘80s and continue to dwindle today. Now populations are restricted to areas in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. Habitats are found in patches like islands, isolated by unsuitable habitat and urban development.

Serpentinite: what Serpentine soil is composed of

Main Threats and Cause of Listing:

Many factors contribute to the overall decrease of bay checkerspot butterfly populations--all of which can be traced back to anthropogenic sources. Some are more obviously elicited by humans such as the use of pesticides, illegal collecting, and vehicles strikes. Other factors include extreme weather, air pollution, and invasive species and are more indirectly caused by humans.

The two major threats to bay checkerspot butterflies are habitat loss and fragmentation, and invasive species. As urban development continues in the Bay Area, more land is converted for human use. In Santa Clara, for example, land habitable by these butterflies is being used as a landfill. However, even mere human presence in these areas disrupts and fragments their habitats. With less habitable area, there are less butterflies.

Additionally, an increase in human activity results in increased levels of smog, air pollution, and most notably nitrogen. This greatly impacts the native plant species these butterflies depend on as a food source and shelter for their eggs. The owl's clover and dwarf plantain, to name two, are accustomed to Serpentine soil. As we burn fossil fuels for our energy needs, nitrogen levels in the air are augmented. This nitrogen seeps into the soil and increases the soil's fertility making it unsuitable for key native plants but optimal for the spread of Eurasian grasses and other non-native invasive species. With less suitable and further fragmented habitat, Bay checkerspot butterflies decrease in fitness and number.

Another human induced cause of the bay checkerspot butterfly's decline is the use of pesticides. The survival of larvae is reliant on the survival of its host plants which provide it shelter and food. Caterpillars must grow as much as possible in the spring before their host plants dry out so that they can hibernate through summer. Pesticides poison these host plants and threaten the survival of these bay checkerspot butterflies if they are unable to develop in time for summer.

Recovery Plan: 
The recovery plan created by US Fish and Wildlife Services combines multiple approaches to appropriately address the many various causes of bay checkerspots' decline. Of top priority is habitat protection. Habitats will be prioritized based on size, quality, and location relative to other habitats. Buffer zones will also be included as necessary. 

Populations will be monitored through mark-and-recapturing of larvae to provide a better understanding of Bay Checkerspot butterfly demographics. These estimates done with larvae will then be extended to estimate adult population sizes. 

Reestablishment will also occur taking 2 forms: reestablishment of bay checkerspot populations and reestablishment of vegetation. 

Lastly, the final part of the recovery plan is public outreach. Public outreach will aim to address the fragility of San Francisco Bay Area serpentine grassland ecosystems and ways citizens can be proactive in its protection.

What you can do:
Much of what currently threatens Bay Checkerspot butterflies are effects of climate change. However, we can slow climate change with simple lifestyle adjustments to reduce our ecological footprints. Some of these adjustments can include lessening our electricity use or limiting our meat consumption. One that more directly benefits Bay Checkerspot butterflies is to drive less and better adhere to speed limits. Ammonia and NOx emissions are directly proportional to speed, increasing exponentially with increasing speed. If we can limit our road emissions, we can maintain the chemistry of the Serpentine soil, a critical factor to the survival of these butterflies

Even more directly, you can volunteer to pull weeds of invasive species and replant seeds of native species. When invading plants are removed, native plants can reestablish and more habitat will be available for the survival of Bay Checkerspots.




Being vocal and active in your community is also important. Each of our voices can stress to our leaders how important it is for land development and management to be both sustainable and appropriate. Halting continued fragmentation or destruction of Bay Checkerspot butterflies' habitats is a political matter shapable by us. Especially if you live in the Bay Area, your input is crucial and stronger than you may realize. After all, all big changes are made up of little changes. 


Bay Checkerspot butterfly populations remain unstable but if we combine personal and political effort, we may be able to secure the revival of Bay Checkerspot butterflies.

References: 

-http://www.fws.gov/sacramento/ES_Kids/Bay-Checkerspot-Butterfly/es_kids_bay--checkerspot-butterfly.htm
-http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/980930c_v2.pdf
-http://www.friendsofedgewood.org/bay-checkerspot-butterfly

-http://www.xerces.org/bay-checkerspot/
-www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/invertebrates/Bay_checkerspot_butterfly/index.html 

You "Otter" Help the Southwest Alaska Distinct Population Segment of the Norther Sea Otter

Lane Province

BIO 227

Description & Ecology
The Northern Sea Otter or Alaskan Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) is the one of three sea otter subspecies that inhabits the “Ring of Fire” coasts. Sea otters are known for being the largest member of the weasel family and the only ones that live almost entirely in the water. On average the Northern Sea Otter’s age will range from 10 to 12 years, but has been known to live up to 25 years of age. While sea otters are known as the smallest marine mammal, they average 4 ½ feet long and 65lbs in their adulthood. Sea otters are social animals that spend their leisure time floating in groups, called rafts, which range from 10 to more than 100 in size. These rafts are usually separated into two groups: females and pups, and males. The color of Northern Sea Otters range from brown to almost black, with guard hairs that can be silver, to light brown, to black. However, as they age their fur around their hands and necks will lighten to almost white. Sea otters in general have long flat tails, webbed hind feet, and retractable front claws. The Northern Sea Otter’s diet mostly consists of benthic invertebrates: clams, mussels, urchins, crabs, fish, etc. They mostly hunt during the mornings and afternoons, and must dive to capture their prey underwater, at depths that reach up to 250 feet below sea level. Predators of these sea mammals consists of humans, sharks, bears, eagles (mostly on young sea otters), and killer whales.

Geographic and Population Changes
The Southwest Alaska Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of the Northern Sea Otter resides on the southern peninsula and archipelago of Alaska from the Cook Inlet in the east, through the Aleutian Islands in the west. This region is highlighted in red in the figure below. Prior to their population decline in the 1980’s, the Northern Sea Otter in the Southwest Alaska DPS were estimated to be between 94,050 and 128,650 in 1976. This number has significantly declined to an estimate of 53,674 otters in the Southwest Alaska DPS based on surveys conducted in 2000-2008. Unfortunately, it is also estimated that this population is inflated, and was indeed lower during the development of the recovery plan in 2008-2010.

Listing Date & Type
The Southwest Alaska DPS of the Northern Sea Otter was listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 2005.

Cause of Listing & Main Threats
There are many threats to the Southwest Alaska DPS of the Northern Sea Otter, but the main threat, labeled with the highest importance, is predation. More specifically the predation by killer whales. Other threats, of low to moderate importance, include: oil spills (the potential and past spills), infectious diseases (mainly valvular endocarditis), hunting for the harvest of meat, and illegal take (from local human populations). The combination of these factors and others that ranked as low importance have all contributed to the steep decline in Northern Sea Otter populations in the Northwest Alaska DPS, thus leading to their listing under the ESA.

Description of Recovery Plan 
The recovery plan for the Southwest Alaska DPS of the Northern Sea Otter has three main objectives:

1. Achieve and maintain a self-sustaining population of sea otters in each MU. 
2. Maintain enough sea otters to ensure that they are playing a functional role in their nearshore ecosystem.
3. Mitigate threats sufficiently to ensure persistence of sea otters. 

The obvious goal of the recovery plan is the delisting of this DPS within the “foreseeable future” (25 years as defined by the PVA model). To be considered delisted as threatened, the DPS must meet all of the delisting criteria in three of the five Management areas of MUs. The chart below demonstrates how each MU must do to meet the delisting in demographics, ecosystem-based, and threats-based criteria

Personal Action
There are several ways how you can support the preservation of the Southwest Alaska DPS of the Northern Sea Otter. Below is a list of organizations that you can join or donate to learn more about this DPSs threatened population, and get involved.

• Friends of the Sea Otter
• The Alaska Sea Otter and Stellar Sea Lion Commission

SOURCES:

• http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/Recovery%20Plan%20SW%20AK%20DPS%20Sea%20Otter%20Aug13.pdf
• http://www.seaotter-sealion.org/seaotter/factsseaotter.html
• https://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/protectedresources/seaotters.htm
• http://www.seaotters.org/alaska-program/

Southwestern Willow Flycatcher

By: Kaitlin Poulain

Photo by Bill Maynard, New Mexico
Department of Game and Fish

Southwestern Willow Flycatcher

(Empidonax traillii extimus)

TAXONOMY:                  DIMENSIONS:

Class: Aves                         Length: 5.75 inches

Order: Passeriformes          Weight: 0.42 oz

Family: Tyrannize                Wingspan: 8.5 inches

Genus: Empidonax

Species: traillii                     INTERACTION CALLS

Subspecies: extimus        

DESCRIPTION:

During spring in the southwestern part of the United States, the air is full with the ripe calls of many bird species, but none have the distinct sneeze-sounding "fitz-bew" of the southwestern willow flycatcher. These birds do not draw much attention to themselves and look so much like other flycatchers the even expert birders have trouble picking one out from a line up. Only by its song, is this bird distinguishable from its fellow flycatchers. However it does have slightly distinguishing appearance. The back and wings have a grayish-green color with an almost white throat, light olive breast, and a pale yellow belly. Each bird has two wingbars and an eyering is either faint or not there at all.

DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT:

The southwestern willow flycatcher gets it name from the region of the United States that it breeds in. Historically these birds could be found in a range that extended from southern California to western Texas and as far north as southern Colorado and southern Utah. Over the years their range has not changed too dramatically. Most of the range has remained intact except for a little shrinking on the far eastern portion of their range.

These birds prefer dense riparian (along the river) areas to nest in. They like dense trees and shrubs that offer protection. Many of these birds look for rivers, swamps or other wetlands to nest in. Most southwestern willow flycatchers historically nested in native vegetation along the waterways, however has the riparian communities changed due to introduction of exotic species, the flycatchers have begun utilizing the new vegetation in the environment. They now also build open cup nests in non-native trees or hybrid native/non-native trees. 

Photo by G. Andrejko, Arizona 
Game and Fish Department

THREATS AND LISTING:

Photo by G. Andrejko, Arizona
Game and Fish Department

One of the biggest threats to the southwestern willow flycatcher is human interference in their environment. For over a century, these birds the faced decline because of livestock grazing, water withdrawal and sprawl. As the native riparian vegetation thins or is removed the flycatchers have less of an opportunity to find the right amount of dense vegetation needed to nest. In addition, although flycatchers can nest in the non-native vegetation, efforts to reduce the amount of exotic species in riparian ecosystems has destroyed alternative nesting options. Because of this, these songbirds become more vulnerable to other birds who prey on their nests. Cowbirds have been known to incubate in flycatcher nests which inhibits flycatcher population recovery. After a petition, and years of lobbying, the southwestern willow flycatcher was listed in the endangered species list by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995. However, due to the lack of interest and lack of popularity among the public, these poor songbirds have been forgotten by administration. 

RECOVERY PLAN:

The recovery plan for the revival of the southwestern willow flycatcher lists several steps that could ensure eventual delisting. They include

http://www.fws.gov/southwest/es/arizona/Documents
/SpeciesDocs/SWWF/fCH2013/Overview_w_Excl.jpg

1. The establishment of Recovery Units and Management Units that will build populations of the species up to a certain criteria customized to the specific area
2. Protection from threats that have prevented the species from thriving in the natural habitat
3. Minimization of major stressors to the species that occur because of humans

These steps outline a basic plan that could help and although the government has done some work in the helping flycatchers, the Center for Biological Diversity has, since the beginning of its history, championed for the southwestern willow flycatcher to be listed and protected by the government. Since listing, the Center has done much to ensure the flycatchers territory is kept safe for flycatcher use. They have helped to get 200,000 acres of land among 1,227 miles of river protected for the use of species that live in riparian ecosystems. 

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

In order to help with recovery efforts, those with private land among riparian areas can limit the pumping of groundwater or the thinning of vegetation along the waterways. The flycatchers need the dense vegetation to protect themselves. Supporting the Center for Biological Diversity efforts in species revival is also vital to helping recovery. Much of the recent successes in protecting this species can be attributed to the great work the Center has done. Lending support to the revival of riparian areas is also a good way to help species protection.

Help these songbirds so that the southwestern United States can continue to hear the little "fitz-bews" of the southwestern willow flycatcher each spring.

SOURCES:

http://www.fws.gov/nevada/protected_species/birds/species/swwf.html

http://sbsc.wr.usgs.gov/cprs/research/projects/swwf/wifllook.asp

http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/birds/southwestern_willow_flycatcher/

http://sbsc.wr.usgs.gov/cprs/research/projects/swwf/wiflvocl.asp

http://www.fws.gov/carlsbad/SpeciesStatusList/RP/20020830_RP_SWWF.pdf

Jaguar

*(Panthera Onca)*

Listed as endangered with a recovery plan from 4/20/2012

By, Alex Peralta

Description and Ecology

          Jaguars are typically 80 to 348 pounds, making them the largest cats in both North and South America, and are yellow, tan or reddish yellow. Jaguar litters vary from one to four cubs over a gestation of 101 days with a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, making jaguars K-strategists. These animals are specialized ambush hunters and especially talented in stalking their prey. Their main source of prey are deer, monkeys, crocodiles,  frogs, fish, or anything else they can catch. Jaguars require a pretty large habitat of about 5 to 64 square miles for males but somewhat smaller for females.

Geographic & Population Changes

Today, at best, there are only 15,000 jaguars remaining in the wild.  Jaguars previously ranged from Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, and south west United States. However, jaguars are no longer found in El Salvador or Uruguay and are almost completely eliminated from the United States today. Habitat destruction is one of the two biggest threats to today’s jaguars.  More than 60% of jaguar’s historical range in Mexico has been lost. High rates of deforestation are isolating populations so severely that jaguars are becoming very susceptible to illegal human hunting.   

Cause of Listing

The top two threats to the current jaguar population is definitely habitat destruction as well as illegal hunting. Deforestation is causing habitat fragmentation and putting jaguars in a very vulnerable position. Hunting severely effects jaguar populations directly and indirectly. Hunting for their pelts is much less prevalent as their paws and teeth. Another major reason these cats are killed is because of conflicts that arise between them and humans. Jaguars are a problem to rancher’s cattle and account for thousands of jaguars each year in Central America. Indirectly, people are hunting jaguar prey at alarming numbers, specifically 27% of the current jaguar range has a depleted prey base. Additionally, if jaguars have nothing to prey on, they cause more problems between ranchers and their cattle. It is hard to completely eliminate this risk because the take of jaguars is already illegal, but it can be suppressed by education, financial incentive programs, and improve the presence of law enforcement. 

Recovery Plan Visions

• To summarize what is known about the status of the jaguar throughout its range, and identify primary information gaps and broad actions necessary to address conservation of the species outside of the U.S. and northwestern/western Mexico.


• To address in significant detail the actions necessary to conserve jaguars in the northwestern portion of their range.

Recovery Plan Actions

Most of the recovery actions revolve around restoring damaged habitats as well as protecting the current habitats. To do this, it it crucial to control the issues between humans and existing populations. It is also a huge goal to improve connectivity of fragmented habitats to aide in the movement of jaguars without being interrupted by human interaction and possible conflicts. It is also a possibility that tax incentives will be given out to discourage the illegal killing of jaguars and additionally create educational programs to increase jaguar awareness. Something else that would benefit jaguars would be improving the protection of cattle and therefore decreasing direct conflicts between jaguars and angry ranchers. 

Personal Action

There are many steps that can be taken to help preserve and protect jaguar populations throughout the Americas. First of all, humans can stop clear cutting so many forests in South America. Deforestation is rising at an alarming rate and causing too much isolation to jaguar populations. Personally, people should make sure the timber they buy is from sustainable sources. Something else we can do it spread awareness about the dwindling jaguar populations because then maybe people would know that what they're doing has substantial effects on wildlife. 

Works Cited

http://media.sandiegozoo.org/2012/06/19/san-diego-zoo-jaguar-cub-ventures-a-paw-outside/

http://www.hdwallpapersnew.net/jaguar-animal-desktop-wallpapers/

http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/049777%20-%20Jaguar%20Recovery%20Outline%20-%20April%202012_2.pdf

http://www.defenders.org/jaguar/basic-facts

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/content/dam/news/photos/000/713/71394.ngsversion.1422288079140.adapt.768.1.jpg