The young maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus), weighing 26 kg, rescued by the Eco Park Foz team in partnership with the Environmental Police, the Iguaçu Jaguars Project and Itaipu Binacional on Avenida das Cataratas and taken to the Bela Vista Wildlife Refuge (RBV) last week, is ready to return to the wild.
Ybipiru, as he was baptized by the rescue team, a word that means "lost, disoriented" in Tupi-Guarani, underwent several tests that showed he was healthy and ready to return to his habitat.
He is now being cared for at the RBV until ICMBio defines a safe place for him to be released, and his location is being monitored by GPS due to the financing of a monitoring collar by Eco Park Foz.
In addition, this animal is typical of biomes such as the Cerrado, Pantanal and open grassland areas, and is rare in regions of the Atlantic Forest, such as Foz do Iguaçu.
The presence of maned wolves in an urban area and outside their natural habitat is a consequence of the loss and fragmentation of habitats that force wild animals to move in search of resources such as food or shelter.
The case reinforces the importance of wildlife conservation and monitoring actions, especially in regions where urban pressure and environmental degradation threaten natural ecosystems.
The maned wolf is classified as "vulnerable" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, and its presence in urban areas is a reminder of the need for public policies that promote connectivity between habitats and the protection of biodiversity.
The rescue
The rescue began on Wednesday night (12) when the animal was seen cornered next to a restaurant on Avenida das Cataratas, in a place where the risk of being run over is very high. Soon after the Environmental Police were called in, they began a joint rescue operation to save the wolf.
According to Leandro Mautone, founding partner of Eco Park Foz, the whole group (the Environmental Police, Eco Park Foz and the Iguassu Jaguars Project - Instituto Pró Carnívoros/Parque Nacional do Iguaçu-ICMBio) worked very carefully, as the animal was feeling cornered and was in a place where it could accidentally be run over.
To facilitate transportation to the Wildlife Refuge, Henrique Riva, Eco Park Foz's veterinarian, sedated the animal.
