TUCSON, Ariz. - The Arizona Game and Fish
Department is currently analyzing a recent trail camera photo of either a jaguar
or an ocelot sighted southeast of Tucson.
The photo includes only the
tail and a small portion of a hind quarter of the animal, making positive
identification more difficult. Game and Fish is now consulting with outside
experts about the photo, taken Sept. 23 and submitted by a sportsman, to better
identify the species.
"We have definitively determined that it is either
a jaguar or an ocelot, but we need to do further analysis of the animal's spot
patterns and size to try to positively identify which species it is," said Game
and Fish Nongame Branch Chief Eric Gardner.
Four of the last five
confirmed jaguar sightings in Arizona have been reported by hunters, who all
took responsible action to document the animal and report it to Game and Fish.
Sportsmen also provided Game and Fish with two sets of trail camera photos of an
ocelot in the Huachuca Mountains in 2012. These hunters have provided biologists
with critical information that may not otherwise be known, information that will
help increase the understanding of these species' existence in the borderland
area.
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