VIRGINIA
TECH WILDLIFE PROFESSOR
GOES GLOBAL WITH JAGUARS
BLACKSBURG, Nov. 21,
2002 - Have you ever
wondered how wildlife
photographers are
able to catch that
indescribable image
of a wild animal swiftly
and methodically attacking
prey with just its
claws? Marcella Kelly,
assistant wildlife
professor in Virginia
Tech's College of
Natural Resources,
does just that for
jaguars of the Chiquibul
Forest Reserve at
Las Cuevas Research
Station in Belize,
Central America.
The
name jaguar comes
from the Tupi-Guarani
Indians of Amazonia,
whose word yaguara
means "a beast that
kills its prey with
one bound." Kelly
uses infrared remotely
triggered cameras
to photograph jaguars.
Because jaguars have
distinct coat patterns,
individuals can be
identified from photographs
and a "capture" history
established for each
animal. This project
will produce the first
density estimates
of jaguars in tropical
rainforests.
Kelly's
research involves
using new technology
to collect much needed
data on elusive, endangered
species. Each day,
Kelly's research team
sets out through the
rainforest of Belize
to cut trails and
establish camera stations
in the dense jungle.
It is better if the
stations are under
complete tree canopy
cover because the
slightest motion or
heat disturbance can
activate a camera.
"With all of the wires
and placement requirements
(e.g. clearing the
site), it takes over
an hour to set each
one up," says Kelly.
"The
jaguars seem to show
curiosity towards
the camera's flash,"
notes Kelly. Researchers
place a pair of cameras
every three square
kilometers in order
to keep track of the
jaguars. The cameras
are checked once every
ten days. "We found
that most of the same
jaguars come back
to have more pictures
taken of them," explains
Kelly. "The real problems
come from the opossums.
We have pictures of
them taking pictures
of each other or taking
the wires out of the
cameras," says Kelly.
"It could be worse,"
laughs Kelly, "Elephants
tend to step on the
cameras and squash
them in the African
research."
Jaguars
are an endangered
species, restricted
in range by over 50
percent due to habitat
destruction and loss
and illegal hunting.
Kelly's findings estimate
there are at least
eight jaguars per
100 square miles.
"In conservation terms,
the Chiquibul Forest
Reserve is a healthy
rainforest," Kelly
explains. "There are
a lot of animals living
in the rainforest.
Jaguars have a large
home range. By protecting
their home range and
habitat requirements,
we are protecting
all of the other species
that live within the
jaguar's home range."
This is called the
"Umbrella Species
Concept," and will
likely lead to protection
of bio-diversity as
a whole. Species are
all interconnected.
If one animal is disturbed,
then all of the animals
are disturbed either
directly or indirectly.
Kelly
notes the work is
very labor intensive
with field work each
day including extensive
hiking and hacking
through the jungle
in search of rewarding
photographs. She advises
that "the best unarmed
self-defense against
a jaguar is to pump
yourself up and make
yourself look really
big. Make lots of
noise and don't run.
Stand your ground.
Although Kelly has
only seen a jaguar
once, she has seen
a few 600-pound Mountain
cows (tapirs) and
heard several stories
of wild pigs (peccaries)
chasing humans up
into trees for hours
on end.
Other
research efforts taking
place at Belize's
Las Cuevas Field Station
include the endangered
ocelot, a smaller
spotted cat; bats;
hawkmoths; the Xate
plant; and leaf miners;
to name a few. Funding
and support for these
research projects
come from Virginia
Tech, the Wildlife
Conservation Society,
the National History
Museum in London,
the National Science
Foundation, and the
McBean Family Foundation.
Other research efforts
conducted by Kelly
involve using a highly
specialized computer
program to assist
in matching thousands
of photographs of
cheetahs from the
past 25 years in order
to construct the life
histories of Serengeti
cheetahs and the reproductive
careers of female
cheetahs. Additionally
she has conducted
a survey of the small
mammal diversity and
abundance in the Chiquibul
Forest. Recently,
Kelly spoke to the
San Francisco Exploratorium
using satellite technology
to conduct a series
of live webcasts from
the remote field site
in Las Cuevas, Belize.
The studio audience
and anyone watching
the webcast were able
to ask questions over
the internet about
her project with jaguars.
The live interview
is available as an
archive at this website:
http://www.exploratorium.edu/origins/belize-london/live/index.html.
Jaguar shots taken
by the jungle cameras.
