PHOENIX — Another jaguar has been spotted in southern Arizona, making it the eighth different jaguar documented in the southwestern U.S. since 1996, according to wildlife officials.
A hobbyist wildlife videographer who posts camera footage online captured the image of a wandering jaguar in the Huachuca Mountains near Tucson late last month, the Arizona Republic reported.
A spokesperson for the Arizona Game and Fish Department said the agency has verified images of Jason Miller and confirmed this is a new jaguar to the United States.
The animals were listed as endangered in 1997 after being removed in 1980.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has designated approximately 750,000 acres of important protected habitat for the jaguars along the southern Arizona-New Mexico border.
Authorities say Arizona jaguars are part of the species' northern population, which includes Sonora, Mexico's breeding population.
“I'm confident this is a new jaguar, previously unknown in the United States,” said Russ McSpadden, southwestern conservation advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “After being nearly wiped out, these majestic felines continue to recover previously occupied territory despite the construction of border walls, new mines and other threats to their habitat.”
Officials said the rosette pattern on each jaguar is unique – like a human fingerprint – and helps identify specific animals.
The new video shows that the cat is not Sombra or El Jefe, two jaguars known to have roamed Arizona in recent years.
The gender of the newly spotted jaguar is unclear.
“Whether male or female, this new jaguar needs a mate. Now it's time for us to have a serious conversation and take action to bring jaguars back,” Megan Southern, jaguar recovery coordinator at The Rewilding Institute, told Phoenix TV station KPNX.