Growing Up Jaguar

The 49th jaguar cub born at the Jacksonville Zoo made his debut on 1 January, 2009, in a hay-bedded, camera monitored den. Staff remotely observed the mother interact with the newborn singleton cub, licking, licking, and licking some more. The reason for the hands-off was that the mother had been wild caught and human reared from a cub in Guyana. Her mothering skills were at first in question, but she proved to be an exemplary parent.

These photographs were taken in an off-exhibit holding yard, where the cub is playing with his mother. In the first, momma still tries to pull him around by the nape of the neck or the head -- she can barely fit her mouth over his broad body. He is about five months old in these images, and like a kitten, his antics are non-stop, punctuated by cat-naps, snuggling with momma, and watching the guests go by. He is also eating an adult meat diet, just like his momma.

Photos by J. Reed