New Mexico could play role in saving jaguars from extinction, petition says
There is only one jaguar living in the U.S., scientists believe, in Arizona, and New Mexico could be part of the species’ restoration to its historical range in the American West.
Last year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service opted to remove New Mexico lands from an area designated as critical habitat for jaguars, which were listed as endangered 1972, shrinking its habitat to be used for reintroduction by about 59,000 acres in the state’s southwest bootheel region.
This included areas in the San Luis and Peloncillo mountain ranges which run into southeast Arizona where the Service maintained its habitat designation for the species.
This was in response to a decision filed in 2021 by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Mexico District Court following a lawsuit by agricultural trade groups the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau, New Mexico Cattle Grower’s Association and the New Mexico Federal Lands Council.
But in a petition filed Dec. 12, the Center for Biological Diversity the group argued both states were needed for reintroducing jaguars in the U.S. and seeing its population increase to avoid extinction.
The Center argued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, despite listing the species for federal protections 50 years ago, so far failed to adequately protect the species from extinction.
Jaguars are known to dwell in northwest Mexico, the petition read, but lack genetic diversity and are impeded by climate change.
Expanding their range in the U.S. and reintroducing the cats would help restore its population, argued the petition.
“Restoring the jaguar to a small part of its historic range in the U.S. would enrich our southwestern ecosystems, genetically bolster jaguars in Mexico, and show that we love life on earth, even in its fiercest manifestations,” said Michael Robinson with the Center for Biological Diversity.
Gila National Forest in southern New Mexico was proven to have ideal jaguar habitat, the petition argued, and would be suitable for reintroduction with abundant deer, elk and javelina the cat could prey upon.
Robinson pointed to reintroduction programs that proved successful in Argentina, involving a public planning process to include local communities and stakeholders.
He said a return of the jaguar’s presence in the U.S. would benefit the broader ecosystem, as the species already supported the evolution of prey. He pointed to the mule deer which Robinson said developed ears that can swivel to detect the camouflaged predator.
“Because all life is connected in ways that humans only partly understand, I truly believe that jaguar reintroduction will benefit the long-term sustainability of all living beings in the Southwest,” Robinson said.
The petition called for the federal government or restore critical habitat designations in New Mexico and add lands in the region for a total area of about 14.6 million acres used for restoring the species in four areas between the two states.
Connecting the protected lands in New Mexico and Arizona along the international border and reintroducing jaguars there would allow known populations in Mexico to travel north and breed to increase genetic diversity, the petition argued.
That would entail introducing jaguars to habitat along New Mexico’s western border to Arizona in an area within Gila National Forest north of Silver City, the petition read, along with smaller areas in New Mexico’s southwest corner.
The petition also sought to add lands in Arizona to the east of Phoenix and in the mountains to the north around Flagstaff and Prescott.
Evidence of jaguars in North America dated back to some of the continent’s earliest indigenous peoples, the petition read, and the animal’s place in spiritual teachings of Pueblo peoples in northern New Mexico, Navajo tribes and the Apache.
“Pueblo peoples throughout northern New Mexico and Arizona regarded the jaguar as one of several supernatural avatars who served as mentors in hunting,” the petition read.
It was in the early 20th Century when the U.S. government began killing jaguars to protect local livestock production, hindering its survival and evolution.
That was a wrong the Center argued must be rectified by designating lands in the U.S. for the jaguar to thrive and reintroducing them.
“Notwithstanding the government’s deplorable consistency in hindering jaguar conservation, the passage of laws and their enforcement has led policies and practices regarding jaguars to evolve,” read the petition.
And despite its listing under the Endangered Species Act, and the federal government setting aside about 764,000 acres for habitat in 2014, the jaguar still struggled to grow in numbers, the petition read, and stronger action was needed.
“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can do far better,” read the petition. “The geography, history, and biology pertaining to the jaguar, as well as the law, argue for a new approach to jaguar conservation.”
In a statement following the court decision to remove New Mexico lands from jaguar habitat, former New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau Chief Executive Officer Chad Smith said the species' survival in the U.S. was unrealistic and efforts to restore its numbers would only add regulatory burden to the livestock industry.
“This is a species that is heavily reliant on different climates other than the arid southwest,” he said. “We’re not opposed to conservation by any means. We’re an important part of that, but we also have to be smart about it.”
Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, firstname.lastname@example.org or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.