© Sebastian Kennerknecht
While we celebrate wild cats year-round, our Wild at Heart campaign is a special opportunity to spotlight these species and the incredible impact they have on our shared ecosystems. Wild cats play a crucial role in safeguarding the Earth's delicate balance, climate and biodiversity. As carnivores, they help maintain healthy ecosystems by controlling populations of prey species, preventing overgrazing and balancing food chains, which collectively counteracts habitat degradation. Wild cats also help indicate and garner protection for healthy forests with strong carbon sequestration, which ultimately helps mitigate climate change. Their presence serves as a reminder of the interconnectedness of all life on our planet and the importance of preserving natural ecosystems for future generations.
Here are just a few wild cats who wear Panthera GPS collars and are actively monitored and protected by our staff in the field.
Location: Brazilian Pantanal
What Makes Them Wild at Heart: Patricia is the mother of at least four jaguar cubs and is well-known in the Brazilian Pantanal, having been tracked by Panthera for over 12 years — outlasting several of the area’s dominant males. Her longevity demonstrates the efficacy of jaguar protection initiatives in this ecosystem.
Fact About Species: Jaguars in the Pantanal are excellent swimmers and are often seen hunting large aquatic prey like caimans.
Project: Jaguar Identification Project
Location: Costa Rica
What Makes Them Wild at Heart: He was the first oncilla Panthera and partners fitted with a GPS collar, enabling us to track his landscape use and how frequently he crosses roadways.
Fact About Species: Oncillas are one of at least 14 wild cat species that exhibit melanism, a dark pigmentation in the fur. Calcetines is one of these individuals with this rare phenotype.
Project: Wild Cats Friendly Roads
Location: Kafue National Park, Zambia
What Makes Them Wild at Heart: King has traveled all over the Greater Kafue Ecosystem in search of his kingdom. Surrounded by Panthera’s Halo Approach of Protection, his journey is an example of how a male big cat can safely and effectively disperse.
Fact About Species: Like lions, male cheetahs like King can form coalitions that help them hunt and challenge for mates.
Project: Panthera Zambia
Location: Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula
What Makes Them Wild at Heart: Scout is the mother of two kittens and is helping to grow the local puma population. Panthera and partners from Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, Skokomish, Makah, Jamestown S’Klallam and the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribes, the Quinault Indian Nation and the Washington State Department of Transportation protect pumas like Scout and her kittens through the Olympic Cougar Project.
Fact About Species: Like jaguars and tigers, pumas are strong swimmers and have been documented swimming to islands as far away as 2 kilometers (1.2 miles).
Project: Olympic Cougar Project
In the Thai jungle, Panthera staff and partners place a remote camera on a tree to help study elusive Indochinese tigers.
Panthera Puma Program staff in Washington state inspect tracking technology to locate pumas threatened by habitat fragmentation.
Panthera Zambia staff survey the landscape, using telemetry to help them spot a lion or cheetah.
A Panthera staff member shows colleagues how to use SMART technology to document instances of poaching to aid conservation action.
A scientist uses telemetry to locate ocelots in the Brazilian Pantanal as part as a long-term ecology study.
Panthera Zambia staff and partners fit a lion with a GPS collar, enabling them to track her movements and protect her from threats.
Each year, Panthera's Wild at Heart campaign features a new origami template. Fold them all!
Puma (2024) | Jaguar (2023) | Tiger (2022)
Have fun and share your folded wild cat with us on social media by tagging us at @PantheraCats using the hashtag #WildAtHeart.
STEP 1: Fold along Line 1, creating a large triangle.
STEP 2: Fold inside along Line 2.
STEP 3: To create the puma's face, fold along Line 3.
STEP 4: To create the ears, fold Line 4 and Line 5 — the edges should align along the gray lines next to the Panthera logo and QR code.
STEP 5: To create the cheeks, fold in Lines 6 and 7.
And there you have it! You now have your own puma to show off that you're Wild at Heart!
For the first time, you can get your very own Wild at Heart T-Shirt! Visit our store.
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© Sebastian Kennerknecht
