Artists perception of El Mirador at ca. 200 B.C., by T.W. Rutedge. From Matheny 1987: 322-323, National Geographic Vol 172, No. 3, Sept. 1987.
La Danta Pyramid
Cristiana de Amenabar of the Carlos F. Novella Foundation and Dr. Richard Hansen observe the forest from the summit of Structure 1, Nakbe.
Dr. Hansen on top of Tigre Pyramid
Ribbon Cutting 2006 Water Well Carmelita.
New Visitor Center, Carmelita 2006
Community Capacity Building 2006
Blanca Nino with supporters.
Peten Burning
Encroaching fires 2005
Encroaching fires 2004
Tikal Archaeology
Experts from Western Mapping Company (Tucson) establishing laster scanner technology at El Mirador.
Mapping architecture with Total Station Technology at El Mirador.
Onsite education
Signage and Donor recognition
Intepretative signs designed in cooperation with the U.S. Dept of Interior.
Base of the Jaguar Paw Temple, El Mirador, Guatemala.
Tourist stairway on the back side of Danta pyramid, El Mirador.
On site facilities for staff, El Mirador.
Water cistern construction at El Mirador for the archaeological staff and camp.
Jaguar (Panthera onca)
Ocelot (Felis pardalis): Rare and endangered species
Poaching
Jaguar (Panthera onca): Jaguars are revered in many indigenous American cultures. The Maya believed that the Jaguar, God of the Underworld, helped the sun to travel under the earth at night, ensuring its new rising every morning.
Jaguar (Panthera onca): Jaguars are found in tropical rainforests, arid scrub, and wet grasslands. They prefer dense forests or swamps with a ready supply of water. Geographically they are found in the Southwestern United States throughout Central America and into Northern South America.
Jaguar (Panthera onca): Jaguars feed on small prey such as the capyabara and the peccarie but will also eat larger animals such as cattle. They will also eat reptiles such as the crocodile and small rodents. It has a very powerful jaw and usually kills its prey with one bite. Its name comes from the South American Indian word "yaguara." This means "a beast that kills its prey with one bound". Unlike most big cats, Jaguars don't kill by biting the neck. They bite through the temporal bones of the skull and kill quickly.
Jaguar (Panthera onca): Panthera onca is composed of eight subspecies, all of which are threatened. Some are extinct except in zoos, where they breed successfully. The greatest threats to jaguars are overhunting for fur and the loss of habitat due to clearing of forests. Biologists find it difficult to study wild jaguars because of their reclusive nature and rarity. Most information on them comes from those held in captivity.
Jaguar (Panthera onca): The Jaguar is a solitary animal. Male and female interaction only occurs during mating and the male leaves directly afterwards, leaving the female to raise her young alone. Jaguars are known to be able to survive within a circular territory of three miles in diameter. If food is scarce they will often need to roam over an area of 200 square miles in search of food. Jaguars are rapid runners, but tire quickly, and can climb trees well. They are also proficient swimmers and prefer areas with plenty of fresh water.
Margay (Leopardus wiedii): This species is rare and endangered throughout its range. In the past, thousands of individuals per year were harvested for their fur. Hunting pressure has decreased considerably following international protection, although some illegal harvesting still occurs locally. The virtually exclusive use of forested habitat may make L. wiedii more vulnerable than ocelots to the negative effects of habitat destruction and fragmentation. (de Oliveira, 1998; Nowell and Jackson, 1996)
Ocelot (Felis pardalis): This species is rare and endangered throughout its range. In the past, thousands of individuals per year were harvested for their fur. Hunting pressure has decreased considerably following international protection, although some illegal harvesting still occurs locally. The virtually exclusive use of forested habitat may make L. wiedii more vulnerable than ocelots to the negative effects of habitat destruction and fragmentation. (de Oliveira, 1998; Nowell and Jackson, 1996)
Puma (Puma concolor): Some subspecies are listed in CITES Appendix I; all others are Appendix II. Some populations are listed as Endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Two populations listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act are considered extinct (Puma concolor schorgeri and Puma concolor couguar). Puma concolor coryi, Florida panthers, and Puma concolor costaricensis are considered endangered and extant.
Great Curassow (Crax rubra):
Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii): CITES Appendix I, US-ESA endangered. Tapirs are hunted for food and sport. Tapir meat is much prized, and they are easy to locate using dogs or by imitating their whistling call. Also, because of deforestation, the populations of all species have declined in recent years.
Collared Peccary (Tayassu tajacu): Peccaries are gregarious animals; group size ranges from a few animals to several hundred depending on the species and on how heavily hunted they are. They forage during the day, feeding on a wide variety of plant and animal materials.
Ocellated Turkey (Meleagris ocellata)
Great Tinamuou (Tinamus major)
Plain Chachalacas (Ortalis vetula):
Spotted Skunk (Spilogale putoris)
Common Opposum (Didelphis virginianus)
Striped Skunk (Conepatus semistriatus)
Tayra (Eira barbara): The tayra is not endangered in most of its range; in some parts of South America it is the most common carnivore due to its ability to live near humans in disturbed habitats. However, in Mexico, human spread of agriculture, loss of tropical habitat, and hunting have greatly reduced populations. The Mexican sub-species, E. b. senex, is now considered vulnerable by the IUCN (Emmons, 1990; Nowak, 1999).
White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus):
Red Brocket Deer (azama americana): The Red Brocket Deer is distributed from Mexico through Central and South America as far as northern Argentina. It is found in thick forest where there is dense undergrowth particularly swampy areas and close to rivers. They are well adapted to forest life with short front legs and antlers, found only on the males, simple and short enough to slip through the vegetation. The body and legs are a rich chestnut brown while the head and neck are grey-brown. The face is plain. The young are red with white spots for the first few months. We thought that this female might have been pregnant. They are active during both the day and the night and are usually solitary.They feed on fruit, fungi and, when little fruit is available, leaves.
Ocellated Turkey (Meleagris ocellata):
Coatimundi (Nasua narica): This species of coati was very plentiful in the 1950s, but suffered major population declines in the early 1960s for unknown reasons. Populations have since been recovering and this population increase has been accompanied by a northward extension of their range. The threats to their numbers are legal hunting by humans and several predators including cats, boas, and large predatory birds. (Nowak 1999) The species is rated "Lower Risk" by the IUCN. The government of Honduras has listed its population of the species in Appendix III of CITES, placing restrictions on international trade in their animals. (Nowak, 1999)
Grey Fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus)
Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata): In some areas agouti populations have greatly declined because of both hunting and habitat destruction.
Jaguar Camera Locations: These are strategically place in the southern portion of the Mirador Basin, where there is the largest concentration of water.
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Encroaching Fires, 2005
