SECURING CONNECTIVITY FOR JAGUARS IN STRATEGIC REGIONS OF SONORA AND SINALOA

THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO MITIGATE SITE-SPECIFIC SOURCES OF MORTALITY AND SPECIFIC BARRIERS TO JAGUAR MOVEMENT AND DISPERSAL WITHIN AND INTO SONORA THAT CURRENTLY IMPEDE RANGE-WIDE RECOVERY FOR JAGUARS IN NORTH AMERICA AND REDUCE THE INCIDENCE OF HUMAN-JAGUAR CONFLICTS IN THE PROJECT AREA. .BY IDENTIFYING AND THEN ADDRESSING WILDLIFE MORTALITY HOTSPOTS ON ROADS AND HIGHWAYS THAT CUT ACROSS JAGUAR HABITAT AND MOVEMENT CORRIDORS, THE PROJECT WILL CREATE A CONNECTED NETWORK OF LANDS THROUGH WHICH JAGUARS (AND THEIR PREY) CAN ROAM WITHOUT THE RISK OF WILDLIFE-VEHICLE COLLISION, WHICH IS A SIGNIFICANT CAUSE OF MORTALITY.

TO ACHIEVE THESE OUTCOMES, WILDLANDS NETWORK AND PARTNERS WILL: (1) IDENTIFY ROAD MORTALITY HOTSPOTS USING ROADKILL DATA (2) ANALYZE JAGUAR, PROXIES FOR JAGUAR (INCLUDING OCELOTS AND COUGARS), AND JAGUAR PREY MOVEMENT PATTERNS NEAR TARGET STRETCHES OF HIGHWAYS AND ON BRIDGES AND CULVERTS, INCLUDING PREVIOUSLY ADAPTED INFRASTRUCTURE THROUGH CAMERA TRAP RESEARCH (3) WORK WITH PARTNERS TO ADVOCATE MITIGATION MEASURES, TO INCLUDE WILDLIFE UNDERPASSES OR OVERPASSES, APPROPRIATE FOR EACH HOTSPOT (4) ENGAGE LOCAL COMMUNITIES, FEDERAL AND STATE TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS, AT EACH STEP OF THE PROCESS TO GAIN POLITICAL BUY-IN AND SUPPORT FOR IMPLEMENTATION (5) BRING TOGETHER JAGUAR CONSERVATION PRACT