ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - The Latest on the proposed recovery plan for the endangered jaguar (all times local):
3 p.m.
Environmentalists say a proposed recovery plan for the endangered jaguar falls short when it comes to offering a strategy for restoring a breeding population of the elusive cats in the United States.
A binational team of wildlife officials from the U.S. and Mexico released the draft plan Monday. It focuses on efforts to eliminate poaching, sustain habitat in northern Mexico and the American Southwest, and bolster social acceptance of the species.
Some environmentalists say the plan puts too much focus on recovery efforts in Mexico rather than considering translocation and other efforts to boost numbers in the U.S.
The proposal is the result of a legal fight against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that was won in 2009 by the Center of Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife.
___
2:15 p.m.
A team of wildlife officials in the United States and Mexico has drafted a recovery plan for the endangered jaguar.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released the plan Monday. While the elusive cat is found in 19 countries stretching from the American Southwest to South America, the agency says the plan focuses on efforts in northern Mexico and the U.S.
Earlier this month, an image captured in a southern Arizona mountain range shows what is believed to be the second wild jaguar spotted in the U.S. in recent years.
As part of the species’ proposed recovery plan, scientists haven’t prescribed jaguar reintroductions in the U.S. They’re focused on efforts to sustain habitat, eliminate poaching and improve social acceptance of the animal to accommodate jaguars that disperse north of the border.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.