Jaguar disappears into thin air after returning to the wild: 12 million euro reward offered to anyone who provides information

The Acaí jaguar, a female just over two years old, was released on October 5 in El Impenetrable National Park in Argentina as part of a reintroduction program led by Rewilding Argentina together with the National Parks Administration and the government of Chaco.

Its return to nature represented a crucial step for the conservation of a species declared a National Natural Monument. Unfortunately, however, last October 25th his satellite collar suddenly stopped transmitting. From that moment on, nothing more was heard of Acaí.

The millionaire reward

More than a month after the disappearance, the Argentine National Parks have established a reward of 250 million pesos (almost 12 million euros) for anyone who provides useful information to identify those responsible. The announcement was released on International Jaguar Day, with a more somber tone than usual: this time there was nothing to celebrate, but to recover.

The investigations are ongoing

The objective is to break the silence that envelops the area, where no one seems to have seen or heard anything. The collar was not recovered, despite intensive searches in the Bermejo River, the last known geolocation point. The Sáenz Peña Federal Prosecutor’s Office, led by prosecutor Carlos Amad, is coordinating an investigation that includes analysis of the seized devices, verification of satellite images, land and river patrols and checks in difficult-to-access areas.

A search with no results

Despite numerous roundups, the use of specialized teams and the analysis of the latest satellite trace, neither the collar nor Acaí have been found. The conditions of the area, the low population density and the dense mountain make everything more difficult.

The prosecutor urges caution: there is no evidence to confirm the death of the jaguar, but not even elements to suggest its survival. The experts at Rewilding Argentina, who raised her in “controlled freedom”, are much more pessimistic and believe it is probable that Acaí was killed.

The environmental damage was estimated at 2.7 billion pesos (around 127 million euros), a figure that reflects the ecological value of the animal and the investment in the breeding and release process. Authorities hope the reward will finally reveal crucial information and prevent similar incidents from happening again, putting the jaguar’s fragile resurgence in Argentina at risk.

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