We
walk a six mile transect through dry tropical rainforest, over hills,
valleys, steep canyons, setting and baiting live traps in late
afternoon, January 2001. It
is the dry season and the vegetation has a droughty look that doesn’t
look at all tropical. In the morning, we will check the traps, trying
to solve the puzzle of where ocelots prefer to prowl.
Live
traps are buried along transects, with only the opening exposed. The
traps have two compartments, one for the chicken used as live bait to
attract the ocelot and the other for holding the trapped ocelot.
Ocelots
are medium-sized cats weighing between 18 and 35 pounds. They prefer
areas of dense vegetative cover with a high density of prey such as
small mammals, birds, lizards and snakes. They prowl from dusk until
dawn, using their sharp vision and hearing to hunt. Ocelots are agile
climbers and leapers that escape their predators by climbing into
trees. During the day they rest in trees, in dens below large trees
and in other cool, sheltered sites on the ground. This is why the
live traps are buried in the ground beside trees using live chickens
as bait.
Most
days, the traps are empty but some mornings we are lucky. Excited to
see you but saddened that it must be through a cage. You
are a magnificent creature. When we
approach you are agitated and growl. We push a big stick with a
syringe at the end into the cage, inject you with a tranquilizer and
wait for you to slumber.
We
touch your fur as you slumber. You have a beautiful, soft,
multi-layered tawny colored fur. The spots on your head and legs are
small. The markings on your back, cheeks and flanks are larger closed
circles and stripes. A few black stripes run from back of your neck
to the tail. The front of your neck and undersides are white. Your
ears are rounded, with a large white spot. This camouflage helps you
blend into the forest while you hunt and helps protect you during the
the day when you are sleeping. You have a distinct wild animal odor
and release this scent to mark territory.
We
record your measurements and health and document your spotting
pattern, unique for each of you. We put a radio collar on you to
track your movement, wait for the tranquilizer to wear off, and watch
you groggily awaken. After we open the cage, you stagger off at first
but soon regain your senses. Wildlife cameras have been set up across
the project area. We hope to be able to identify you later from the
photos we have taken of your spotting pattern as you roam.
Ocelots
are solitary animals that do not migrate but rather maintain a fixed
territory. The size of the territory depends on the availability of
prey. In areas with less rainfall and further from the equator the
territories are larger.
The
study area is the Chamela Cuixmala Bioregional Preserve (the
preserve), a UNESCO world heritage site on
the Pacific Ocean coast about 100 miles south of Puerto Vallarta in
the Mexican state of Jalisco. It was established in 1993 by
Presidential decree. The preserve is
located in a dry tropical rainforest. There are only remnants of dry
tropical rainforests on the Mexican Pacific coast, which is highly
fragmented due to human activity.
The
Jalisco dry tropical rainforest
is located at
latitude 19.5 degrees north. The dry season
is between November and June, with virtually all of the 30 inches of
average annual precipitation falling during the wet season.
Dry tropical rainforests have mostly
broad-leaf trees with canopies less dense
than equatorial tropical rainforests. The trees
lose their leaves during the dry season.
These extreme rainfall conditions impose much stress on the flora and
fauna.
There
was not much information on the size of territories or distribution
of ocelots within the preserve. This area of isolated, beautiful
Pacific coastline was also beginning to attract tourists and there
was commercial interest in developing more resorts to cater to these
tourists. To address these issues, the National Autonomous University
of Mexico (UNAM) was tasked by the Mexican
government with identifying which areas within the 32,000 acre
preserve are the most important
habitats for sustaining the ocelot population. I’m
one in a long line of American scientists assisting UNAM
with this study. Our Co-Principal
Investigators are late twenty something PhD researchers educated in
the United States,
who have returned to Mexico to study ocelots.
We
settle into the Latin American work rhythm, checking the traps after
a quick breakfast, and usually finish up around noon. Then we have a
few hours to relax before the big meal of the day around 2pm. Siesta
time until 4pm and then into the field to set and bait traps until
dark.
We
live in a hostel by the ocean. Some days, I walk along the beach
between 12 and 2 pm. There are small beverage stands along the beach
that sell Pacifico. I sip beer and watch the waves. On days when it
is my turn, I feed the chickens and clean out the coops. A local women comes in to prepare
the main meal, always fabulous authentic Mexican
food such as tamales, mole
chicken, posole
and menudo. She leaves a small supper for
us when we return
in the evening.
The
preserve is an important refugia for
tropical biodiversity. Endemic species,
adapted to these extreme rainfall conditions are threatened by
habitat destruction due to logging, illegal hunting,
tourist infrastructure and wildlife trafficking, primarily parrots.
Twenty-three
years later, the preserve is
still faces these threats. But scientific
studies continue, with an ever evolving Management Planthat has an
intensive conservation focus.
For
millennia you and your ancestors have
lived and died in this dry tropical
rainforest
. Surely
we can take the timeto
understand your harsh but fragile world,
help you survive into the future
and leave the best spots for you before
taking the restto
carve up for roads and resorts.
