Where to see to see Jaguars in the Wild

Taken during our San Carlos Wildlife Tour in Bolivia

 

The Jaguar or Panthera Onca is the largest Cat in the Western Hemisphere and is one of the most elusive yet beautiful animals on the planet, tourists from all over the world flock to South and Central America hoping to get a glimpse of this big cat however the vast majority are lucky even to see tracks.

Its common knowledge that the North Pantanal in Brazil is the best place to observe them, with thousands of cashed up photographers flocking to the Pantanal yearly and are paying upwards of two to ten thousand dollars per person to film and observe Jaguars, Even though the sightings are amazing these trips are not for everyone and the thought of sitting on a boat filled with other passengers with other tour boats surrounding the Jaguars competing for the best photographic positions are not for everyone. These tours are also in the high budget range and not affordable for everyone.

November 2015 Jaguar sightings in Kaa Iya National Park Bolivia

This brings to question where are the best Jaguar viewing destinations apart from the North Pantanal ,so through constant travel and research we have devised a list of proven Jaguar viewing hotspots which even rival the Jaguar viewing success of the Pantanal.

KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK

MADIDI NATIONAL PARK

SAN CARLOS WILDLIFE RESERVE -BENI BOLIVIA

JAGUARLAND RESERVE -  SANTA CRUZ BOLIVIA

JAGUARLAND RESERVE IN SANTA CRUZ

Jagaurland Reserve is a private property just 5 hours from Santa Cruz. This is the best area by far in Bolivia for Jaguar observations. In 2019 we have had a 100 percent success rate at seeing Jaguars and have seen 22 Jaguars in just 6 Trips. In addition we have also observed Ocelots, Puma, Tapirs, Pink Dolphins, Sloth, Marsh deer and more. We rate Jaguarland as the best wildlife watching destination in Bolivia. 

KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK - SANTA CRUZ DEPARTMENT BOLIVIA

One of the best Jaguar viewing destinations is the rarely visited Kaa iya National Park, located in the Santa Cruz department of Bolivia and consisting of the world’s most pristine Chaco forests, this amazing National Park truly is an excellent area for frequent Jaguar sightings, in the dry season of July –November its common to have multiple big cat and Tapir sightings per trip. The Park itself is larger than Belgium and is part of the 2^nd largest forested area in the world.

Close up encounter with this large male Jaguar in Kaa Iya National Park 

 The area where Jaguars are seen the most is in a highly restricted part of the Park which is protected from the outside world, as well as having excellent Jaguar viewing opportunities Tapirs, Pumas , Ocelots and much more are seen frequently making it easily the best big mammal viewing destination in Bolivia. In 2006 WCS completed a camera trap study of the park which was aimed at Jaguar populations and they estimated over 1000 Jaguars to be living within the park. The Kaa Iya National Park was also chosen as the best destination to film Jaguars in Bolivia and it has featured in the new book National Parks of Bolivia by photographer Daniel Alarcon where he photographed a female Jaguar with its cubs daily for over a month. 

Sadly with a change in Park admin tourism does not seem to have much importance, park permits are extremely hard to obtain and are not able to be given in advance, toilets, suitable bathrooms and kitchen facilities have been deemed out of bound for tourists and now its only camping in unbearable and unhygenic conditions. A new environmental licence costing over US 4000-6000 dollars is being implemented for tour operators whom wish to operate inside the Park. 

Night encounter with this young female Jaguar which we watched for over 45 minutes in Kaa Iya National Park Bolivia

SAN CARLOS WILDLIFE RESERVE BENI BOLIVIA

This remote and spectacular private reserve holds very healthy populations of Jaguars. In our last two visits we have seen 4 different Jaguars as well as a huge variety of other impressive wildlife. Here Jagaurs can be seen with some frequency without another tourists in sight and also Black Caiman, Pink Dolphins,Marsh Deers, Anteaters and much more. 

This Reserve was developed to help recover losses caused by Jagaur and Puma Predation of Cattle, now thanks to eco tourism there is a no hunting policy and we expect great results in a growth of Jaguar sightings and growth in the future.

MADIDI NATIONAL PARK

The open rivers and sand banks of Madidi National Park make excellent Jaguar viewing in the dry season

The 3rd best place on our list of best places to see Jaguars is in the spectacular Madidi National Park, Located in the Beni Department of Bolivia this park is one of the most beautiful and bio diverse locations found anywhere on the planet, unlike other Amazon areas like Iquitos in Peru and Manus in Brazil which are now booming cities  the base town Rurrenrabaque is still small in population which means hunting , logging and settlements and entry into the park is minimal in comparison to other Amazonian Regions. To see Jaguars here you have to venture deep into the Amazon, there are numerous touristic lodges here however only the deepest ones have the most realistic chances of seeing Big Cats, there are certain parts of the rivers where Jaguars are still seen often,  as the peccary populations inside the park have boomed so have the populations of Jaguars. Other species of Wildlife which can be seen here include the vocal Giant Otters, Tapirs, White Lipped Peccaries, Giant Anteaters, Ocelots, Pumas and much more. 

Access to the Madidi National Park is easy, you can fly from La Paz or Santa Cruz to the town of Rurrenrabaque and here there are a huge variety of tour operators who offer Jungle Tours, the key is locations and as the majority of lodges are close to the Town or are over- run by tourists then picking the right lodge to visit is key to having the best chances for Jaguar viewing. The best lodges where you have the best chances to see Jaguars include Berraco del Madidi lodge, Chalalan Lodge and Madidi Jungle.

Jagaur tracks along the many Sandbanks of Madidi National Park

Jaguar sighting in the Madidi National Park along the Tuichi River

Other notable mentions of where to see Jaguars in the wild include

MANU NATIONAL PARK IN PERU

REWA HEADS GUYANA

SOUTHERN BRAZILLAN PANTANAL

BENI DEPARTMENT BOLIVIA