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Phoenix Zoo's Northern Jaguar from Sonora, Mexico is Going Home
Phoenix, AZ - Lucero, a northern jaguar from Sonora, Mexico, has completed his extended visit and will be returning on Tuesday, March 23 to the Centro Ecologico de Sonora in Hermosillo after 16 eventful months at the Phoenix Zoo. From now until Monday, it will be the last opportunity for guests to bid farewell to Lucero before his departure. Lucero arrived in Phoenix in November 2008 after a series of collaborative efforts by the Commission of Ecology and Sustainable Development for the State of Sonora (CEDES), Arizona Game and Fish Department and the Phoenix Zoo. Born in the wild, four-year-old Lucero had been illegally captured in southeast Sonora and sustained life-threatening damage to his teeth. Mexican wildlife authorities rescued Lucero and brought him to Centro Ecologico de Sonora, where zoo officials expressed concern over his injuries. This led to his transfer to the Phoenix Zoo, where a team of veterinary dental specialists performed complex surgery to repair his severely damaged teeth. The veterinary team also took blood and tissue samples for a DNA study on the northern jaguar. “It has been our privilege to host Lucero over the past year,” says Phoenix Zoo President and CEO Bert Castro. “While we were honored to play a key role in ensuring his well being, Lucero has more than repaid us by helping us to learn more about the northern jaguar population. The information we have obtained will aid conservation efforts tremendously.” Lucero spent the next several weeks recovering after surgery while getting acquainted with Caipora, the female jaguar with whom he would share an exhibit. When he made his public debut at the Phoenix Zoo in February 2009, Lucero was one of the few wild-born jaguars in captivity in the U.S. Although Lucero’s surgery was successful, the extent of his injuries and time spent in captivity are likely to prevent him from being released into the wild. “We are very happy about the completion of this project,” said Arizona Game and Fish Department International and Borderlands Program Manager, Francisco Abarca. “The strong partnership developed with CEDES and the Phoenix Zoo was critical for the successful completion of the dental care, safe handling and transportation to and from Arizona. Lucero was an excellent ambassador in our state for educating people about the importance of jaguar conservation along the U.S.-Mexico border.” An endangered species, the jaguar was thought to have vanished from the U.S. landscape until two independent sightings in 1996. Arizona and New Mexico comprise the northernmost reach of the northern jaguar’s range, which stretches through Mexico, Central America and South America. “We will certainly miss Lucero at the Phoenix Zoo. We feel fortunate to be able to share such a beautiful and rare animal with our guests and hope that those who have seen him will take an interest in helping the plight of the northern jaguar,” Castro adds. “We are honored to have served as host for this remarkable animal, but it’s time for him to return home to the Centro in Hermosillo. We are eager to continue developing our partnership with the Centro and look forward to fruitful collaboration and friendship for years to come.” About the Phoenix Zoo To view Phoenix Zoo's web page on Zoo and Aquarium Visitor, go to: http://www.zandavisitor.com/forumtopicdetail-95-Phoenix_Zoo |
By Carolina Guana
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Unusual to have three snow leopard cubs
Congratulations to ABQ BioPark and the proud cat parents on the birth of three snow leopard cubs. That's fantastic news and we look forward to these three playing an important role in snow leopard survival breeding and also helping educate people about their endangered cousins in the wild.
Snow leopards live in some of the most extreme environments on earth - in high altitudes and freezing temperatures. If we don't do a lot of work with communities and governments in snow leopards 12 range countries, these beautiful cats may be extinct in the wild in our life time.
Sibylle Noras
Founder and Publisher
“Saving Snow Leopards” website. See how conservationists and zoos are working to help these rare and elusive cats avoid extinction.
http://www.snowleopardblog.com
Love penguin fluffballs.
I especially liked if you go to the zoo's homepage and click on the info about naming the baby, the winner says she'd like to be able to tell her dad that a penguin was named after him for his birthday. Adorable!
If you have any interest in reading a new blog, featuring conservation of adorable animals and their habitats, please check out my website...
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http://conservationcute.blogspot.com/
Thanks!
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For more information about World Oceans Day and a list of other events in your area you can visit www.WorldOceansDay.org
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Asome news on the new baby! I agree with everyone here on the fact that animals should not be in captivation. If you want to check out a really cool place in Thailand where you can care for elephants check out http://www.elephantstay.com this place is a sanctuary for retired working elephants, it's an amazing place and they do so much good for the animals who live there. I went a few months ago and it was amazing.
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Publisher, http://www.tikikiki.com
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response to starseed
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hey
http://www.deafmatching.com is an online community for deaf, ASL and hearing-impaired friends and singles!
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Don't support it anymore
I think we should move on from having dolphins in captivity now - we all know this isn't good for them.
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The Pacaya Samiria National Reserve is a magical place. The flora, fauna, remoteness and beauty are exquisite. Another interesting aspect is how the indigenous people there live. To learn more and see photos taken by indigenous children in the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve, you can visit ninosdelaamazonia.org
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