A jaguar will be living at San Francisco Zoo & Gardens for the first time in 24 years.
An 11-year-old male jaguar was recently transferred from the Sacramento Zoo, where it had been living since 2012, according to a news release from the San Francisco Zoo.
“Jaguars are the iconic cat of the Americas, and we are honored to share the story of this near threatened species, whose challenges include habitat loss, hunting and poaching,” said Tanya M. Peterson, CEO and Executive Director of San Francisco Zoological Society. “Jaguars once scaled all of the Americas, from South to North America, and we hope his arrival will educate Zoo visitors about saving his species before it is too late.”
The big cat will be housed in a temporary habitat adjacent to the lion house while a permanent habitat is constructed.
The jaguar will get a new name sometime this summer.
The cat was transferred by recommendation of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums’ Jaguar Species Survival Plan, which is a collaboration between accredited zoos and aquariums to maintain genetically diverse, self-sustaining populations of animals in captivity.