On 5 June, a female jaguar named Yaguara stepped out of a steel cage onto a sandy riverbed in Bolivia's Noel Kempff Mercado National Park, becoming the first successfully rehabilitated jaguar released into the wild in the country's history. Orphaned as an eight-month-old cub during Bolivia's worst recorded wildfire season in August 2024, Yaguara had been raised at the Comunidad Inti Wara Yassi (CIWY) rescue centre's Ambue Ari reserve.
Historic release in Noel Kempff Mercado park
Yaguara's release into the 1.5 million-hectare park marks a turning point for jaguar conservation in Bolivia, according to Iván Márquez, the biologist overseeing post-release monitoring. "Yaguara has changed the history of jaguar conservation in this country," he said. The jaguar, classified as near-threatened globally by the WWF, faces severe threats in Bolivia, including habitat loss, poaching, and human-wildlife conflict. Wildlife researcher Damián Rumiz noted that the species is currently listed as vulnerable in Bolivia, with discussions underway to downgrade its status to endangered.
Poaching and wildfires drive decline
Poachers kill an average of 61 jaguars annually in Bolivia, the highest rate globally, with body parts trafficked primarily to China. Wildfires, many intentionally set for agriculture and cattle ranching, have further reduced jaguar territory. In 2024, Bolivia ranked second only to Brazil in deforestation worldwide. As apex predators, jaguars regulate prey populations and maintain ecological balance, making their decline a threat to broader ecosystems.
Yaguara's rehabilitation journey
Unlike many captive jaguars, Yaguara was an ideal candidate for release: healthy, wary of humans, and able to hunt small prey. CIWY built a 10,000-square-meter enclosure with a pool, costing about $80,000, to simulate park conditions. Camera traps recorded over 600 interactions with a wild male jaguar, indicating natural mating behavior. Staff supplemented her diet with roadkill and monitored her instincts. The total release cost was approximately $120,000, including transport by small plane and boat.
Challenges and costs of jaguar rehabilitation
Rehabilitating captive jaguars is rare and expensive. Many, like Ambue Ari's male jaguar Kusiy, rescued as a pet, cannot return to the wild due to habituation to humans. Rumiz questioned the cost-effectiveness of releasing jaguars into areas with healthy populations, suggesting alternative investments like park ranger training and camera-trap studies. However, CIWY argues the release boosts genetic diversity, provides scientific insights, and is ethically imperative. Márquez added that future releases will be cheaper since the enclosure can be reused, predicting "sadly, this is likely to be the first of many."
