Arizona woman charged for capturing last wild jaguar in the U.S.
May 18th, 2010 - 2:13 am ICT by BNO NewsTUCSON, ARIZONA (BNO NEWS) – An Arizona woman was charged for capturing a jaguar, which is an endangered species, prosecutors said Monday.
Janay Brun, 38, of Arivaca, Arizona, placed jaguar scat or was directed to place jaguar scat at snare sites in an attempt to capture and trap an endangered species, to wit, a jaguar (Panthera onca) on February 4, 2009.
Brun knew that there had been recent evidence of a jaguar in the area of the snares, which had been set solely for the purpose of capturing and placing tracking collars on mountain lions and bears, but there was no authorization to intentionally capture a jaguar. Subsequently, a jaguar known as “Macho B” was caught at one of those snare sites on February 18, 2009.
“Macho B” was the last known wild jaguar in the United States, and twelve days after the jaguar was caught, members of the Borderlands Jaguar Detection Project captured him again after noticing signs of poor health. Unfortunately, due to injuries suffered from the trap, the jaguar had to be euthanized.
Previously, Emil McCain, 31, of Patagonia, Arizona, admitted he had placed a jaguar scat and directed a female employee, Brun, to place the scat at snare sites where the wild jaguar was photographed earlier. He was sentenced to five years of probation
“The Endangered Species Act is intended to protect animals like Macho B, who may have been the last living Jaguar in Arizona, from vanishing forever,” said U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke. “I want to thank the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for their thorough investigation of this matter.”
Brun, if convicted of a prohibited take of an endangered species, faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison, a $100,000 fine or both.
McCain was a biologist working in a project which studied mountain lions and black bears in the mountain area, and he avoided prison time on the condition that he is not permitted to be employed or involved in any way in a large cat or large carnivore project or study in the United States during his probation term.
- Pakistan doesn't have a single lion, tiger, rhino - Nov 07, 2010
- The white ghost of the Himalayas: A vision in the snow (Feature) - Mar 11, 2012
- Using dogs to 'sniff out' wildlife - Jan 12, 2011
- Tigers are more ancient than previously believed - Feb 13, 2010
- Rare 'Asian unicorn' spotted, dies after capture - Sep 17, 2010
- Putin embroiled in animal cruelty row - Mar 29, 2011
- Man finds mountain lion in his garage - May 26, 2011
- Habitat loss drives Sumatran tiger to verge of extinction - Feb 29, 2012
- McCain's visit sparks debate in Kashmir - Aug 18, 2011
- Dangerous Liaisons: Wild cats as trophy pets in UAE (With Images) - Apr 20, 2012
- Texas restaurant to forgo plan to serve lion-meat tacos after threats - Jan 26, 2011
- Scientists use Calvin Klein cologne to lure jaguars - Jun 14, 2010
- US restaurant to sell tacos made from lion meat - Jan 21, 2011
- McCain lauds improving security in Jammu and Kashmir (Lead) - Aug 18, 2011
- Trump not a "serious" presidential candidate: Republican senator McCain - May 02, 2011
Tags: arivaca arizona, arizona woman, black bears, bno, borderlands jaguar detection project, brun, endangered species act, fish and wildlife, fish and wildlife service, jaguar panthera onca, janay, larg, maximum penalty, mountain lions, patagonia arizona, poor health, prison time, snares, tracking collars, u s fish and wildlife service