All, I wish to announce that we, the WildFact Mod Team, have agreed to add our very own @Brahimlegend to the team. We all know Brahimlegend as being very knowledgeable, always very helpful, very responsive, he cares for and respects these creatures very much, and I believe we can all agree that he will do a fantastic job for WildFact, and for our community.

So, won't all join me in congratulating our friend @Brahimlegend in his new, and well earned position!!

Hello everybody !


I have a question about the tiger, can tigers have stripes on their paws also ?

Thread dedicated to the Nkhulu coalition 
In late 2022: a new group of 6 young males + 1 older male made their way and entered southern Sabi Sand... 

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The coalition of seven is made up of:
Six young Nkhulu males
who are sons of the 5 Mantimahle males and half brothers of the 2 Plains Camp males






One DeLaporte male (Dreadlocks) 

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In May 2023, the promising coalition of 6 bold young males and an experienced male showed the first signs of what they came for...
They not just killed but also ate a lioness from the Sand River pride in southern Sabi Sands:






Shortly after this unfortunate event, the ruling coalition of the Sand River pride, the Avocas, cornered Delaporte Dreadlocks and mauled him
DeLaporte male after the fight


One of the two S.Avoca after the fight with the De Laporte male







many questions are left and can only be answered by time...

• Will the Nkhulus be as aggressive as their fathers?
• Will Dreadlocks team up with his partners again?
• Will Southern Avoca be able to turn it around?
  

I hope things turn out with no more victims! Obviously this was just a brief introduction without many details of this promising coalition...

@peter and I wanted to bring this subject forward to the forum.

In the realm of majestic big cats, the threat of inbreeding silently looms, casting a shadow on their genetic diversity and survival. Inbreeding, a phenomenon of breeding closely related individuals within a population, carries far-reaching implications for the morphology and health of these magnificent creatures. In this post, we will delve into the intricacies of inbreeding, explore its causes, examine documented instances, discuss its ramifications, and shed light on how biologists can play a crucial role in preventing this peril.

What is Inbreeding and Why Does It Occur?
Inbreeding involves the reproduction between relatives, often leading to an increase in homozygosity – the presence of identical alleles for a particular trait. This can expose detrimental recessive alleles, causing a range of health issues and reducing overall genetic diversity. In the wild, factors such as habitat fragmentation, small population sizes, and geographic isolation can contribute to inbreeding as natural genetic mixing becomes limited.

Recorded Instances and Consequences:
Documented cases of inbreeding among big cat species serve as stark reminders of its consequences. For instance, the Amur tiger population in Russia faced a critical genetic bottleneck due to excessive hunting, resulting in a small founder population and increased inbreeding. In captivity, the infamous example of the Asiatic lion population at the Gir Forest National Park in India illustrates the dangers of a limited gene pool. Inbreeding depression, manifested through reduced reproductive success, weakened immune systems, and decreased overall fitness, threatens the long-term survival of these iconic species.

Impact on Morphology:
Inbreeding often leads to the expression of deleterious traits, affecting the morphology of big cats. Physical abnormalities, such as congenital disorders, unusual coat patterns, and skeletal deformities, can emerge as a result of the loss of genetic diversity. These traits not only compromise the health of individual animals but also hinder their ability to thrive in their natural environments, impacting their chances of survival and reproduction.

Conservation Efforts and Preventive Measures:
Biologists and conservationists play a pivotal role in combatting the threat of inbreeding. Implementing managed breeding programs that prioritize genetic diversity and minimize the risk of inbreeding can help restore the health of struggling populations. Techniques such as introducing carefully selected individuals from other populations, monitoring genetic health, and promoting gene flow can aid in maintaining the genetic vitality of big cat species.

As we delve into the causes, effects, and potential remedies for inbreeding, a compelling inquiry emerges: do biologists and conservationists truly possess the key to unlocking a brighter future for these majestic creatures? Can collaborative endeavors and strategic interventions effectively shield the invaluable genetic diversity that fuels the vigor of big cat populations for generations to come? The path forward rests not only on scientific understanding but on the collective determination to address this challenge and secure the legacy of these remarkable animals.

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1952, Possibly The Last Jaguar found in Pampa: 
Male jaguar skin and skull in São Lourenço (Southern Brazil)
Said to be a adult male, the jaguar killed some "pigs" of a property and because of that he was shot. Even after being shot he was still able to walk for around 1 kilometer and died with a dog on its mouth. According to the hunters, it was an male weighing impressive: 86 kg
After this slaughter, the presence of jaguars was never reported in the Pampa gaúcho.

The Llanos Region, also called the Bolivian Lowlands, is the general denomination of the Bolivian lowlands, encompassing the north, northeast and east of Bolivia. This region covers 64% of Bolivian territory, making it the largest region in the country with a surface area of 703,040 km². It is located to the north and northeast of the Eastern or Real mountain range, belonging to the Andes, and extends from the department of Pando through the north of the department of La Paz, the department of Beni, the department of Santa Cruz and through the Chaco in the departments of Tarija and Chuquisaca. That is, it covers the entire area from the foothills of the Andes to the Paraguay River, the lowest point in the country, with an average altitude of less than 400 m above sea level.


It is characterized for being a land of plains, covered by extensive jungles of Amazonian type and large lakes. In this region are the rivers of the Amazon basin and the Rio de la Plata from the country and neighboring countries such as the Mamoré River, the Beni River and lakes Rogagua and Rogaguado. It has an average annual temperature of 22 to 25 °C, reaching up to 40 °C. Most of the country's biodiversity is found here, as well as the most profitable arable land.

Within the region there are several geographical sub-regions, such as the Bolivian Amazon, the Moxos Plains, the Chiquitos Plains, the Bolivian Pantanal and the Bolivian Chaco.

Wikipedia

This thread will focus on the populations of Llanos de Moxos, Llanos de Chiquitos excluding Chaco, Pantanal and Amazonian forest areas which are covered in other threads.
The populations of jaguars in the Bolivian lowland grasslands and wetlands east of the Andes and south of the Amazon have been largely ignored by the scientific community so information on their morphology and specific ecology are greatly lacking compared to other populations. Footage of these jaguars is also very rare to come by due to the isolation degree of these eco-regions. Thankfully, tourism in the areas has spiked over the last year providing us with excellent images of these enigmatic but stunning jaguars.

Because these areas are very similar in geography and fauna to the Pantanal and the Orinoco Llanos, it is expected that the jaguars here will be non-dwarfed/large-bodied and thus similar in size to those from the Pantanal/Llanos as they all fall under the floodplain jaguar tier, as do those from the Upper Paraná wetlands and the Wet Chaco which includes the Iberá wetlands.



Wetlands in light green. The Beni Savanna, also known as Llanos de Moxos, covers the majority of the floodplain territory in Bolivia and is one of the largest flooded savannas on the continent.

Compilation of jaguars in Santa Cruz



Credits: Andres Novales, Pietro Rojas, and mr.reptile.sv.

Hello everyone I hope you are well. This thread is to ask you about two discrepancies that I have found while reviewing sources regarding the Amur tiger, specifically the Amur Tiger Program and the Federal State Budgetary Institution "Land of the Leopard" which, as I understand it, work directly with the species. concerned and handle all official records of the statistics collected. The Amur Tiger Program mentions verbatim that the heaviest tiger ever captured had an impressive 384kg, so my question is this: Why don't Slaght and Valvert take that mark into account? assuming that the PTA is the highest authority in this regard. The second issue is that the Federal State Budgetary Institution "Land of the Leopard" verbatim mentions that the historical average for Amur tigers has been estimated at 220kg. So I would like to ask you if you can imagine what sources they used to arrive at such a number? since it is too far from those proposed by Slaght and Valvert, equating it directly with the average of the Bengal tiger. I am attaching screenshots from the official websites. I await your answers and thank you very much in advance.

Hola chicos, espero que estén bien. Soy nuevo en este espacio pero estoy feliz de aprender como muchas personas. Me gustaría preguntarte sobre el verdadero peso y tamaño del tigre de Amur, ya que he visto varias publicaciones afirmando que el tamaño y peso de esta subespecie ha disminuido mucho, incluso por debajo de los 200kg. Pero para mi sorpresa, portales como la Sociedad Geográfica Rusa, el programa de conservación del presidente Putin o la Organización Mundial para la Conservación de Grandes Felinos mantienen sus estadísticas de peso en 300 kg. Mi duda surge ya que Russia WSC basa sus estadísticas en una muestra de población de menos de 100 individuos, unos 70 según su web oficial, y además afirman que todos han sido ejemplares en conflicto y en su mayoría casos muy jóvenes. Entonces mi pregunta es la siguiente. ¿Es válido asegurar que el tamaño y el peso del tigre de Amur han disminuido? Teniendo en cuenta que se ignoran casi 700 individuos que no han sido documentados, y de los cuales varios han sido vistos en cámaras trampa que pesan mucho más de 240kg, me atrevería a decir. Me gustaría preguntarte sobre el verdadero peso y tamaño del tigre de Amur, ya que he visto varias publicaciones afirmando que el tamaño y peso de esta subespecie ha disminuido mucho, incluso por debajo de los 200kg. Pero para mi sorpresa, portales como la Sociedad Geográfica Rusa, el programa de conservación del presidente Putin o la Organización Mundial para la Conservación de Grandes Felinos mantienen sus estadísticas de peso en 300 kg. Mi duda surge ya que Russia WSC basa sus medias en una muestra de menos de 100 ejemplares, unos 70 según su web oficial y que todos han sido ejemplares en conflicto y en la mayoría casos muy jóvenes. Entonces mi pregunta es la siguiente. ¿Es válido asegurar que el tamaño y el peso del tigre de Amur han disminuido? Teniendo en cuenta que se ignoran casi 700 ejemplares que no han sido documentados, y de los cuales se han visto varios en cámaras trampa que pesan mucho más de 240kg se atrevería a decir. Espero sus respuestas Gracias.