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Bonaire Nature & Nature Organizations: Jaguars on Bonaire
Bonaire Talk: Bonaire Nature & Nature Organizations: Jaguars on Bonaire
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #3) on Sunday, November 7, 2010 - 11:17 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Hi, my husband and I returned yesterday from our 6th trip to Bonaire (we stayed at Den Laman and had a lovely time!) but I have a question about an unusual wildlife encounter. About 10 days ago we did a driving tour of Washington Park and were quite surprised when a very large, black "jungle cat" walked across the road directly in front of us!

It looked like a black panther but it must have been a "melanistic phase" Jaguar. I've done an internet search and although I have found many references for spotted and black Jaguars in South and Central America, I have not found any references for these cats on Bonaire or any of the (former) Netherland Antilles.

This was not a ferral or domestic kitty cat - it was a very large, wild cat - like a (black) tiger. I know that I am not halucinting because my husband and I both saw it. So I am writing to ask if Jaguars are indigenous to Bonaire and if so, how large is the population and how common are the sightings?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bob Smits (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #930) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 4:32 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Wow, I never heard of it.
I'm very curious to hear some comments from "the specialists" if any.
Did you ask a ranger at the gate?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #4) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 9:09 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

No we didn't report it. We thought that it was an exciting and unusual encounter for us and we were surprised because it was so very unexpected. It didn't occur to us that this was a very rare sighting until I tried to research Jaguars on Bonaire and didn't find anything.

If it wasn't a black Jaguar (my best guess) then it was definitely some other species of large, wild feline. It was the kind of cat that you usually expect to see at the zoo.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By michael gaynor (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #4187) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 10:27 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Please e mail Junny,the park manager at washingtonpark.org I just spoke with him and he is very interested in your sighting. I must say it would be another great reason to visit the park!..

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bob Smits (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #931) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 10:31 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

I already mailed this thread to the washington park.
Will keep you posted of their reply.

(Message edited by bpsmits on November 8, 2010)

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #5) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 11:45 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

I also sent a message to biologist Jerry Ligon, the naturalist, to see if he was aware of any large wild cats in the park.

He responded that it may have been brought from South America by someone as a pet, perhaps a construction worker, and then released. He said the fact that the cat wasn't too concerned about an approaching vehicle and walked across the road right in front of us suggests a "semi-tame" animal that is used to being around humans.

It's too bad that we didn't get a picture. I had the camera right in my lap but I was very startled when it suddenly appeared and didn't react quickly enough. Hopefully it will be seen by others and they will get a photo. Sp if you go into the park keep your eyes open and your camera ready!

We took the short route and saw it about half-way in; well before you get to the dive sites on the coast. We reached the spot where it had crossed the road in just a few seconds but it had already disappeared; it must have gone over the fence and into the catus forest. It was a beautiful animal!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Carole B. (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #7216) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 2:59 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I could have sworn my husband and I encountered (actually it ran across the dirt road we were on) some sort of big cat (huge...jungle type but not black) over by Boca Onima and the hyroglyphics (sp?) in the cave. It flew in front of us (ground level) and was about the size of a tiger or something along those lines. Not really, really large but "medium". We thought we were seeing things but maybe we were not. This was about three years ago or so. anyone else see this critter around the island?? It was not a feral cat. If it was a mountain lion it had distinct leopard/lion type markings on it...not plain coat. Wow. Now I know we really did see something over there. There was high grass/weeds and rocks around there so we don't know where it went after it "flew" by in front of our car. Hmmmm.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #6) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 4:29 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

About the size of a tiger sounds right. I didn't see any spots and it looked black to us but it wasn't in bright sunlight. I understand that the melanistic Jaquars have spots that may be difficult to see. It was definitely a big wild cat, not a ferral cat. Interesting that we are not the only people to have had a "close encounter" with a large feline on Bonaire!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Eric M. "CamMan" (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1426) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 4:58 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Tigers are the largest and heaviest species of cat on the earth. So a medium cat would not be tiger size. If there is a black cat the size of a tiger on Bonaire, this is going to be a really really big deal.

e.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Glen Reem (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #3264) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 5:31 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Question also of the animal's maturity, hence size relative to an adult of the same species.

JL's importation scenario accommodates a black panther. All the young of the big cats are cuddly – for a while. Might have become a 'handful' on one of those lovely big yachts that visit Bonaire. In any case, sleep tight out there in the kunukus.

Anyone for a stroll (or run?) in the mundi???? Or a mountain bike ride?? Or a bird walk with JL??? Fortunately there are enough feral goats (and free-range domestic pets!) out there to keep one big cat comfortable! Mature donkeys seem a bit big for a jaguar; but a young donkey?? Or a panther??? Might be solution to the feral goat and donkey problems. You don't suppose STINAPA quietly imported a 'solution' to the problems??? No, they wouldn't do that!

As Eric said, and the little man on Rowan & Martin (I believe it was) said each week, 'this could be velly intellesting'.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #7) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 6:19 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I'm afraid that I'm no expert about the relative sizes of wild cats so perhaps "tiger" was a poor choice for comparison. It just looked really big to me. I'm guessing that it was 4 to 5 feet long, without the tail. And it had a really long tail!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Glen Reem (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #3265) on Monday, November 8, 2010 - 7:52 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

KathyV,

Big enough to catch our eye and ear!!! TKS.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Carole B. (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #7217) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 12:52 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Kathy, that was about the same sixz of whatever crossed our path that afternoon, as well. Yes, indeed....velly intelesting (Artie Johnson, I believe). Never thought of this critter chowing down on the goats, etals, but that would be an easy source of chow. Hmmmm. It sounds as tho there is a very, very large "cat" cruising the island. The yacht theory makes a lot of sense, as well.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Just little ole me with a (*) (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #6136) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 10:21 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Seems like they come pretty close to Bonaire..

JAGUAR MUTANTS

The black jaguar is a relatively well known mutation. Black jaguars have been reported from Esmeralda, Venezuala and the junction of the Casiquiare and Orinoco rivers, also from south-eastern Brazil and from Paraguay (where Rengger (1830) reported black and chestnut skins). Jaguars also produce a variety of other colour and pattern oddities. The upper picture is Hemmer's pseudo-melanistic jaguar in which the markings have coalesced (merged) to give a blotched appearance. This is called abundism because markings are more abundant than normal. Some pseudo-melanistic jaguars have been reported as being black with tan or buff underparts, chest and throat (like a black-and-tan dog). On rare occasions, the black spots coalesce to produce a jet plack individual.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Eric M. "CamMan" (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1431) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 1:35 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think Jags are one of the cats that are not afraid to get in the water and go for a swim?

e.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Carole B. (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #7219) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 2:04 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Very interesting. OK, KathyV...we aren't nuts! lol. We DID see a big cat (or two different ones) on island. Very intersting, indeed.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #8) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 2:41 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Yes, I have been reading about jaguars and they like the water and are very willing to go for a swim!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By michael gaynor (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #4188) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 2:42 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

The park manager has been alerted and is aware of the reports. To date, none of the staff has seen said cat but will keep a watch.



 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Eric M. "CamMan" (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1433) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 3:50 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I think this needs to be an episode of MonsterQuest on the History Channel!

e.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jerry (BonaireTalk Deity - Post #29561) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 4:07 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

They could have been brought over on the fruit boats as pets / young cubs?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Freddie {Moderator} (Moderator - Post #1049) on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 7:44 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

the three above posts are so off topic they will be removed from this thread and moved to CC Off topic posts


....please people keep on topic.

(Message edited by modfreddie on November 9, 2010)

(Message edited by modfreddie on November 9, 2010)

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Morto Pa E Leon Piska (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #199) on Tuesday, January 25, 2011 - 8:11 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Don't worry. While on Bonaire for my lionfish hunt I trapped the cat and returned it to it's native habitat.

The construction worker who brought it here was dealt with "Blizzard" style and won't be making that mistake again.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By R.A.... (BonaireTalk Deity - Post #17226) on Tuesday, January 25, 2011 - 10:05 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

He's baaaaaaaack.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Lloyd H (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #644) on Friday, February 4, 2011 - 10:22 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

The Blizz to the rescue

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (BonaireTalker - Post #13) on Saturday, February 5, 2011 - 1:15 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Hi, my husband and I are the people that originally reported the presence of a large black wild cat in Washington Park.

I am a bit confused by the message above. Is that a joke or has the cat really been captured and returned to its natural habitat?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KOB (LBR32) (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #443) on Saturday, February 5, 2011 - 7:42 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

It's a sarcastic joke, Kathy.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By KathyV (BonaireTalker - Post #14) on Saturday, February 5, 2011 - 11:11 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I see, thanks! So I guess that there is no news about our wild cat?

We're not crazy (well, we're divers so we are little crazy!) But we both saw it at the same time. No way could it have been a goat or donkey or large dog. It was a big black jungle cat like you see at the zoo!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By BEM (BonaireTalker - Post #76) on Tuesday, March 1, 2011 - 4:17 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

We'll be heading into the park while we're here and we'll look for something like you described. I'll wrestle him into the pickup bed and keep him down with weight belts.

So far we've seen a lot more goats than previous years, and the island is really green as is Klein! Saw one Lionfish on a dive off Sabadeco - the site was marked with a ribbon and cork.

Rained for the past few days but sunny and windy now (Tues 1 march)

 


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