The jaguar occupies all sort of habitats within its area of distribution, from semidesertic like the Arizona desert (where it was thought to have become extinct, until a specimen was photographed in February 2,002), to the central high plains of Mexico or the Brazilian Northwest, to forested areas such as the Amazons and to elevations such as the mountains of Bolivia and the Argentinian Northwest.

The main limitation to its expansion is altitude; usually it doesn't reach beyond 1,800 or 2,000  meters (6,000 to 6,600 feet) above sea level, although it has been found at 3,000 meters (9,800feet) in Bolivia,. Members of the "Grupo Yaguarete de Salta" have had encounters with a "Tigre" (local name for the jaguar) in the highland grasslands of the Yungas, where it wasn't expected; many other references confirm that it is a casual visitor of this area.

Originally it was found from the Southeastern United States to the banks of Rio Negro in Patagonia. Nowadays, it is most abundant in the Brazilian-Bolivian Pantanal and in some areas of Venezuela and Central America such as Belize.

The main causes of the contraction of its area are varied; mainly habitat destruction to create areas of cultivation or pastures. When this happens the jaguar may attack the herds and the cattle owners may kill it for that reason. They are also assassinated because they are considered a threat to humans, but actually, aside from some isolated cases of attacks generally caused by old or wounded individuals with reduced hunting capacity, or unexpected encounters with a feeding animal or with a female and her cubs, there have never been cases of man-eating jaguars.

In Argentina, the most optimistic estimates are that there is still a population of 250 specimens (although it is impossible to have an exact number), distributed as follows:

Misiones Province: in the Green Corridor that frames the main remnants of forest and where the main nucleus of protected areas are determined by two large blocks: the Parque Nacional Iguazu (Iguazu National Park) in the North and the provincial park Urugua-í. These two parks cover a vast area of almost 150,000 hectares (370,000 acres) that are protected and in a good state of conservation. To them we can add a zone intermediate between them of 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres) belonging to PECOM Forestal that has been sold to Alto Parana; (this issue has generated a great deal of polemic and we don't know the end of it yet and to whom it will belong in the end; this zone would compensate for serious defects of design of the protected areas), and the zone of Puerto Peninsula, West of Parque Nacional and South of Puerto Iguazu, with almost 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) that belong to the army and is in relatively good state of conservation (with confirmed presence of jaguars). The Provincial Parks Yacuy and Esperanza, only approximately 300 and 600 hectares (700 to 15,000 acres) respectively, add a little more surface to the total.

Farther South, the Yabotí Biosphere Reserve (which includes the provincial reserves of Mocona and Esmeralda) protects 253,733 hectares (62.697,424 acres) of forest in different conditions of conservation, although illegal wood cutting puts it in serious danger; it continues to be a good refuge for the jaguar due to its great extension; although it is urgent to implement measures against poachers (especially Brazilian) and timber smugglers, otherwise its protective function would soon be lost.

It is also present in the Provincial Parks Cuña Piru and Salto Encantado and nearby areas although their actual population is barely known and probably it is drastically reduced, but still present.

In these three areas, all along the Misiones Sierra, there are numerous private properties that struggle to keep the forest alive, searching for alternative sustainable uses of the forest and that serve as refuges for the jaguar, such a the Yaguaroundi Private Reserve.

In the Northwest it is found in the North and the East in the national Park Baritu, in the Provincial Reserve Acambuco and in the "Impenetrable" Salta land. In Jujuy province it is found in Calilegua and in the farther eastern region of this province, in rain forest formations as well as "Chaco" type of vegetation.

Its only chance of survival in this area is the creation of a biological corridor linking the national parks Baritu and Calilegua, that has gained great impetus thanks to the realization of the Yungas Biosphere Reserve.

There is also a National Parks Project that intends to establish a biological corridor joining the National Park Baritu, in the North of Salta, and the Tariquia Reserve in Bolivia. These two protected zones are separated by a distance of 15 Kilometers (9 miles).

The third area with jaguars in our country is in the Chaco Region. While in Santiago del Estero it is considered near extinction; it is found in the Northeast of the province, in the National Park Copo and the Provincial Reserve of the same name, they measure 114,000 and 55,000 hectares (280,000 and 140,000 acres) respectively, and its presence is confirmed there although there are only very few references.

These two areas are adjacent so this ensure the protection of an area of about 170,000 hectares (4.2 million acres) and there are interesting estimates of its population in an area where the territorial needs must be very significant due to the scarcity of water and prey.

In Chaco and Formosa, local references suggest that it is present in central West area, it has been seen occasionally and even killed for attacking cattle. In brief, this zone is the least known and the one with least hopes for the future of the jaguar.

Nowadays, the main cause of its disappearance in Argentina is the habitat destruction, that dooms it to geographic isolation and the consequent impossibility of genetic interchange.

Still, the great capacity for adaptation of the jaguar makes it possible that it continue to make its "appearances" in areas with large human population, although, despite the large human population it is very hard to be spotted, such as in the South of Salta (Metan and surrounding zones) and in areas surrounding the Parque Nacional El Rey, where now and then we get news of its possible presence. In Misiones, there are also references that suggest its presence in areas outside of the Green Corridor and severely disturbed by human activity.

Despite all the difficulties present in all areas of the country where the jaguar lives, it is still possible to save its future although it won't be an easy task.

Translated from Spanish by Beatriz Moisset
Willow Grove, Pensylvania, USA.
Red Yaguareté.