The story begins in the deep rainforests of western Belize in early June of last year. This region of Belize is vastly undeveloped and known for its pristine tropical rainforest. The area is highly biodiverse with numerous species including anything from massive hardwood trees to small leaf-cutter ants to the agile spider monkey.

However, this place is also home to five of the six species of wild cat found in the rainforests of Central America. These include the Puma (also known as the Cougar or Mountain Lion), the Ocelot, the Margay, the Jaguarundi, and of course, the Jaguar (Panthera onca).

The sighting took place after sunset, the time when the rainforest truly comes alive. Since so many rainforest species are nocturnal, exploring after dark is a great opportunity to see many elusive critters that are not active in daylight.

As I walked quietly through the forest, toads and treefrogs hopped on the trail in front of me while bats flew above. A tree-climbing creature known as the Kinkajou jumped between two palm trees and a Spectacled Owl called in the distance. While focusing my attention on the scene around me, I was not prepared for what would happen next.

As I strolled down the trail, I noticed a pair of eyes far ahead of me. I shined my light upon them as the eyes reflected back to me in an even brighter orange-yellow. A silhouette of a wild cat was right in front of me and it was walking straight towards me. At first, I thought it could be an Ocelot and then maybe a Puma. As the creature drew closer, it became unmistakable that it was a Jaguar! The strong muscular build, dark spots, and lumbering gait were all clear indicators.

When facing most predatory mammals, it is thought of as common practice to face the animal while avoiding looking it directly in the eyes. This way it is aware of your presence but does not feel threatened in any way. Knowing this, I stood my ground and began to back up slowly once it was about thirty feet away.

At last, the jaguar seemed to have become aware of my presence as its ear perched up.  It suddenly stopped and did something unexpected. It calmly sat down in the middle of the trail; its eyes locked on me. For fifteen seconds the jaguar remained there motionless. Then, the Jaguar suddenly darted off the trail and was gone in an instant. While my photo below is not the best quality, the eye shine is visible in the center.

jaguar by aidan colligan

It had long been a goal of mine to see a Jaguar in the wild after searching unsuccessfully in Costa Rica and Peru. The Jaguar is the largest wild cat in the Americas and a top keystone predator throughout the Neotropical rainforest. While it might be intimidating to encounter one alone at night, jaguars will rarely attack humans if they can avoid it. For such a large animal, they are surprisingly elusive and difficult to see. This makes a wild jaguar sighting so much more special.