Jaguar kills another during mating at zoo

A male jaguar at the Woodland Park Zoo killed a 13-year-old female jaguar while the two were mating yesterday morning.

The 6-year-old male became aggressive, officials said, and bit the female on the back of the head, puncturing her skull.

The incident occurred about 9:20 a.m., a short time after the zoo opened but before visitors had reached the jaguar exhibit. A zoo volunteer saw the attack and radioed for help. The jaguar died almost instantly, said Dr. Janis Joslin, the zoo's senior veterinarian.

"It's a very great loss for all of us."

Grief counselors were at the zoo yesterday to meet with staff.

Jaguars are an endangered species, with about 10,000 believed to be living in the wild.

The female, Jessie, was born in captivity in Quebec and came to Woodland Park Zoo in 1988. The male, Gordo, is her offspring. Like many other species, jaguars, once they become sexually mature, may mate with a parent.

The two jaguars had lived compatibly until recent months, when Jessie's cycles became irregular and she became disinterested, Joslin said. Despite castration, the male could be aggressive.

Staff had noticed some of that behavior yesterday, Joslin said, and put the animals inside.

Toys and allspice were put in the outside exhibit area as distractions. Once the jaguars came back outside, the male jumped onto a swinging platform. The female jumped on as well.

Joslin said the male then tried to mate, the female fought him, and he got angry. "I think he was kind of in an attack mode rather than a breeding mode," Joslin said.

The two animals fell from the platform. It is not clear if the bite occurred while the two were on the platform or were falling.

"I think it was just a freak accident," Joslin said.

She said nothing points to mistakes by zoo staff. Jaguars are solitary animals, and extremes in behavior can be hard to predict. Generally, there are few problems, Joslin said, but, "It's a risk if you put these two guys together who are pretty solitary."

The zoo has been planning a more elaborate jaguar exhibit. It was not known yesterday if or when the zoo might get another jaguar.

Joslin said the incident likely would not prevent another jaguar from living with the male jaguar.

Beth Kaiman's phone message number is 206-464-2441. Her e-mail address is bkaimann@seattletimes.com