Nothing says “let’s celebrate the world coming together in peace” like the display of a chained wild animal, right? Apparently, that’s what the organizing committee of the Rio 2016 Olympics thought.
A female zoo jaguar named Juma was killed after she was sedated, chained and exhibited at an Olympic torch relay ceremony in Manaus, Brazil on Monday.
After the ceremony, Juma, known to be docile and used to living among people at the zoo, escaped her leash. Soldiers and veterinarians tried to recapture her. She was shot with a tranquilizer gun, but reportedly still approached a Brazilian soldier. She was killed with a single shot from a pistol.
The Amazon Military Command said the killing was in line with safety procedures.
Animal Freedom Union, a Rio de Janeiro-based animal rights group, says it best:
"When will people (and institutions) stop with this sick need to show power and control by confining, taming and showcasing wild animals?"
The jaguar is the largest feline in the Americas and nearly extinct in the U.S. It plays an important role in stabilizing ecosystems and regulating the populations of the animals it hunts. The jaguar’s numbers are declining. It’s considered a near-threatened species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
The human population is increasing exponentially. Our activities are now causing the Earth’s sixth mass extinction of animal and plant species. The last one was 65 million years ago, when the dinosaurs were wiped out by what is thought to be an asteroid.
Today, we are the asteroid.
Video
Rare Video of America’s Only Wild Jaguar
Sources
National Geographic
Los Angeles Times