First of all, I would like to thanks to Wanda, Sheryl and Pirjo who did donate to our project and are helping to support our work.
Thank you a lot for your help!
We are in intense field activities, what is troubling us to post more frequently.
To work with endangered species conservation is a challenge per se, but sometimes we need to deal with some surprises – not the good kind of. Yesterday we was on the way to the forest fragment Tucano when we saw an animal killed by a car. An ocelot…
…when we saw an animal killed by a car. An ocelot…
Of course it is terrible to see any kind of animal killed by cars in roads, but this one was difficulty to deal. It takes one or two minutes for me to focus my mind and starts to “work properly”. After all we are humans and are definitely working on it because we love to do it, so I think we can request the right to get upset and sad in see an awesome wildcat, top predator, millions of years in evolution there just laying in a road as a vulture next meal. 
It was an sub-adult male, probably dispersing trying to fix his own territory. We get some basic information and, after a double check on my license from the Environmental Government Agency allowing me to do it, we get the carcass to a biopsy and collection of biological samples.
…we get some basic information…
After all it will give us important information on health, genetics and diet from the specie on the region. Cássio Peterka, veterinarian, collect the samples, which will be sent to Universities and the bank of biological samples of CENAP/IBAMA – Research National Center for Natural Predators Conservation.
We have a lot of work to do if we still wanting these animals around for the next generations.
See you soon…
Donations made here are
Apr 1st Sauwah T USD 49.50
17 Comments
I’m so sorry. It is very sad to see this happen to any animal, as you say, and especially to such a beautiful animal whose existence hangs in such delicate balance. Your research keeps this death from being a total waste.
The only time I’ve seen gila monsters and badgers is as road kill. Very disheartening.
In the southwest U.S. there is a move to protect and create wildlife corridors that allow large predators to move from area to another, e.g. providing tunnels under roadways. We have sightings of jaguar here too (but not ocelot, at least not that I have heard), though they don’t seem to have ventured close to our highways.
Blessings to you and the wonderful, worthwhile work you do.
Yes, it’s always very sad to see such a beautiful creature and any animal killed by autos.
What a depressing site. The driver had to have known they hit a large animal – why didn’t they pull over and see if they could help it or at least report the accident?
s.
sheryl,
the driver didn’t care. and i am sure he/she was in a damn hurry like most people. roads kill period! animals just do not understand nor can they judge the speed of the moving thing coming towards them.
Porra que bosta em Fernando, cena trite !!!
Abraço*
Triste*
Hi Nancy,
Thank you for your regards! It is indeed really sad. My hopes are the same as yours: that our research keeps it from being a total waste and help us to improve management to avoid situations like that. The original distribution of ocelots do not reach Arizona. However in your “almost” neighborhood: the state of T exas – where the specie still surviving, despite the reduced habitat – the Feline Research Program from Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute find that vehicle-collision was responsible for 35% of ocelot mortalities in Lower Rio Grande Valley (Journal of Wildlife Management 69(1):255–263; 2005. In fact, Dr. Aaron Hines and the great team of researchers that work with Dr. Michael Tewes evaluate ocelot recovery strategies through models and to reduce road mortality is a main issue to promote its conservation (Biological Conservation 126 (2005) 512–522). Here, we are dealing with the same problem, but we are indeed implementing forest corridors throughout the landscape. This will not be the final solution: the roads will be there anyway, but we hope to increase habitat and use the data we are gathering to promote culverts constructions in preferred locations, e.g. where the roads across the forest corridors.
Thank you for your kind regards,
Keep coming!
Fernando
Hi Dana,
As I said to Nancy, my hopes are that our research and actions keeps it from being a total waste and help us to improve management to avoid situations like that.
Keep it coming,
Fernando
Dear Sheryl,
Yes, it is really depressing. If you think the site is depressing, can you imagine how sad was to actually be in there? Was a hard day… As Sauwah said, most of them didn’t care. Truck drivers do not even try to break because to then is almost impossible in a short space. To make things worst people do not stop because they have afraid of some kind of punition by the Forestry Service, to been fined by the Road Police (they are always over the speed limit) or just don’t want to stop because they are #$%^& and don’t want to “lose time”. This is not so usual with wildcats, is more common with wild dogs. Because of the vehicle headlight phenomenon is such a recent variable on their evolutive history, they – as Douglas Adam’s says – believe that the best way to deal with that pair of lights is just stand in there staring on it. As they do with everything. Cats take a look and goes away. Think that’s way we have many more crab-eating-foxes dead on roads. Anyway, this is not funny. Once I heard someone saying that if animals are dying on roads is because they are not adapted and it is natural selection. I wanted to jump in the throat of such a Nazi speaker, however – of course, as a gentleman – I just argue, and indeed, as a good scientist, just throw his argument on the ground with best ones…
Best from Brazil Sheryl!
Fernando
Pois é Brunão!
Chato, né… Males do ofício.
Legal você ter aparecido por aqui!
Grande abraço,
Fernando
THat is Soooooooooooooooooooooo! sad i am doing a project on the ocelots and u know wat makes me sick how people can just buy one of those ocelot coats.Eww!I LOVE OCELOTS
that pic is sad:( crys crys ): snif snif
Hi Maddie,
Indeed, it is really sad to deal with the death of such a wonderful animal. How about your ocelot project? Where it is? What are you doing?
Sorry to take so long to answer!
Cheers,
Fernando
I seen a dead Ocelot last summer (2008) on the side of the road. The minute my family and I spotted him we turned the car around and went back too look at his body. He was smaller than the one you have taken a picture of. At the time we thought he looked kind of like a baby tiger. It was so strange to us to see such an exotic cat on the side of the road like that. We talked about it for days and days. When reading our recent National Geographic I realized that these Ocelots are “supposedly” extinct from our area in southwest Arkansas. Nit true. Sadly, oh so sadly, he was dead. I wish I had known to take pictures of him to prove that there was still 1 Ocelot in 2008 that lived in Arkansas. I am hoping he was a baby and his mother will have another litter this spring.
Hi Bronwyn,
Your encounter would be a very important record for the ocelot conservation in USA. There is always the possibility of a released pet, but it should be investigated. During 1800’s ocelot natural distribution in USA reached east and central T exas, Western Louisiana and Southern Arkansas. Although some authors believe that ocelots continue to inhabit Arizona, the animal founded probably has been extirpated except for an occasional wanderer from Mexico. As you said the ocelot is considered extinct in Arkansas, Louisiana, and eastern T exas. They have been reported from southern Florida, including Everglades National Park, but these sightings are thought to represent released pets. Currently, ocelot distribution within the U.S. is limited from southern T exas to the border with Tamaulipas, Mexico. There are only two known breeding populations within southern T exas; one in and around Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge (LANWR) in eastern Cameron County and the other on a private ranch located in Willacy County. According to extensive survey efforts conducted within southern T exas by the Feline Research Center of Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, individuals have been reported outside of these populations but there is no evidence of another breeding population.
Please, it would be great if you try to find the geographic coordinates of the car collision location (you can do this on Google Earth). Visit the Feline Research Center Homepage: http://ckwri.tamuk.edu/research-programs/feline-research-center/ Dr. Tewes and his team has 20 years expertise in ocelot research in US, I believe they will enjoy your valuable record.
Cheers,
pH
It is hoped that we will be constructing a new outdoor exhibit for Ocelots soon. Raising public awareness of the plight of the Ocelot in the US, esp. should form a significant part of the exhibit’s purpose here at the zoo.
I totally feel bad adout that ocelot but.WHO WOULD BELIVE OCELOT’S HAVE 9 LIIIIVVVVEEEE!!!!!!!!! and bronwyn I saw a ocelot on the side of the road too…
Hi Mr. Link, congrats to the North Carolina Zoo Park on this initiative!
Cheers,
Fernando