Leopoldo Silva, president of the Pumas soccer team, read in the press about three puma cubs found in a rural community in Hidalgo and thought they had to help them.
What better than the Pedregal club to support the feline emblem of its shield?
Tracing the fate of the cubs, he learned that Mexico's Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa) had delivered the animals to Jaguares en la Selva, an association with more than 20 years of experience in the conservation and rehabilitation of species. wild.
And the manager contacted them.
"This is how the alliance between the sports team and the environmental organization arose to reincorporate Lontla, Sama and Dasái into nature, the three specimens that since April 2022 have been under the care of a scientific team," says Miguel Robles, administrative vice president. of the sports entity.
The cats will be released as part of a pioneering rehabilitation program.
In Mexico, pumas are widely distributed throughout the territory and, although they are not part of the list of endangered species, they face various threats due to the loss and fragmentation of their habitat.
"Extensive livestock farming generates a conflict of coexistence with the producers, which is causing puma populations to decrease," says Víctor Rosas, the founder of an NGO dedicated not only to the conservation of the jaguar, a felid that gives them their name , but to protect the other non-tropical animals in the region: the puma, the margay, the lynx, the ocelot and the jaguarundi.
"We also develop and carry out environmental education programs hand in hand with communities," adds the person in charge of him.
“Jaguares en la Selva is an association with good scientific and technical support, which is why we decided to support them,” Robles explains.
The objective of this alliance, through which the legendary club contributes financial resources to the rehabilitation program, is that the pumas that arrive in captivity have the opportunity to be incorporated into their natural habitat.
"They will only be released after a rigorous evaluation work that guarantees that the cats have the best health conditions and behavioral and cognitive capacities that guarantee their survival in nature," explains Rosas, whose organization has the facilities to carry out a methodical feralization.
"We have different simulators adapted to the different ages of the pumas, from when they are puppies to juveniles, designed so that the animals develop as similar as possible to their feral environment, avoiding human contact at all times, both visual and auditory" , details the biologist.
In their facilities between mountains and lakes, located in Oaxaca, the felines coexist with their live prey, mostly deer, introduced by a team of scientists who, from observation towers and fixed and robotic cameras, carry out ethological and biological studies as part of the of the program.
"In this way, although the animals are under human protection, they do not generate attachment or dependency on their care," Rosas explains.
The three puma cubs. Club Universidad
The values of the puma: the symbol of a team
“Our objective is to specifically help these three specimens, while generating a culture of respect and protection of the environment within the university club.
It is an alliance in which we have all been involved, from the management to the players”, assures the vice president of the auriazul sports institution that has the puma as its emblem.
“The origin of the symbol was the idea of the American football
coach
Roberto Tapatío, who found in the figure of the animal the motivation that the players needed to face their larger and physically stronger opponents from the north of the country and the United States. but without the agility, intelligence, character and, above all, the courage that his team had, characteristics shared with the pumas", says Pablo Macedo, director of the communication area of the sports institution and for whom "there is no symbol that better represents the essence of our youth academy: our kids go out onto the field to give it their all, even when they are losing, they don't stop running until the last minute!”, he declares.
Under the care of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics, the UNAM had for years several pumas that accompanied the matches and raised the spirits of the fans with their presence.
The first mascot was presented at the stadium in 1947, but the great star of the team was Mitzi, a specimen that accompanied the fans for more than 14 years.
They decided to call its successor, acquired in 2013, Iyari — “heart” in the Wixárika language — and it represented the last living emblem of the club.
“Many years ago, since the university decided not to keep feral animals in captivity.
And today we have Goyo, the most scientific mascot in Mexican soccer, and the most charismatic!” His vice president jokes about the Pumas' botarga, showing great enthusiasm for the announcement of his club's new alliance.
"For us it is an honor that a leading team, which plays in a historic stadium and with thousands of fans throughout the country, has taken an interest in this long-term project," says Rosas.
As the president of Jaguares en la Selva explains, the rehabilitation program will last, at least, until 2024 “and may extend for a few more years.
A lot of resources are needed and we are very happy that the Pumas do not support, showing through this commitment a social and environmental sensitivity outside their scope”.
“With this project we are only contributing a grain of sand to an organization that does excellent conservation work.
But we hope that sponsors and other sports organizations will be encouraged as well, and more visibility and awareness will be generated.
We can all contribute to the environment and to the protection of ecosystems, not only with money, but through small actions that range from recycling to not wasting so much water", affirms its vice-president, sure that "this will be the first of other collaborations to take care of the nature of our country, a value that we want to represent us as a club”.
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