The family was then released in the Ibera National Park in the north-eastern Argentine province of Corrientes.
Juruna and her sister Mariua, who lives with her offspring Karai and Pora in the same national park, were rescued by the Brazilian Environment Institute when they were only a few months old after poachers killed their mum.
Both jaguars were then treated in a Brazilian centre and became part of the jaguar reintroduction project in the Argentine province where conservationists hope to reintroduce the species after they were declared extinct in the area 70 years ago.
This is the second family of jaguars to have recently been released in the area, there are currently six jaguars released in the Ibera park who have now become the main predator, considered key for the balance of the ecosystem, according to the Rewilding Argentina Foundation in charge of the reintroduction project.
The project started over 10 years ago and is reportedly the world’s first attempt to reintroduce a big cat in an area where humans caused their extinction.
Foundation director Sebastian Di Martino said in a press statement that “the return of a key species in the ecosystem like the jaguar contributes to changing their extinction crisis and helps us reduce carbon dioxide to prevent global warming and the appearance of new pandemics”.
Corrientes governor Gustavo Valdes said that jaguars “have been added to other key species reintroduced in the national park like the Pampas deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus), giant anteater, collared peccary, and red-and-green macaw.
He also mentioned that the nearby communities, with around 200,000 inhabitants, are involved in activities linked to wildlife spotting tourism.
The main threats to jaguars are poaching, reduced prey populations, and the destruction of natural habitat.
