The Lone Wolves of the Cerrado

 

A month ago in the Brazilian Pantanal, I got up close and personal with a randy jaguar couple.  I spent last week in the Brazilian Cerrado and met Savana (photo below), a relaxed female maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus, lobo guara in Portugues) near the lodge where I was staying.  She is the local matriarch and was surveying her territory; the Trijunçâo lodge stands in the middle of her playground.

Since moving to Brazil, I have been puzzled by Chrysocyon brachyurus, a fruit eating Canidae.  It is Brazil’s largest Canidae and a symbol of the Cerrado, the world’s most biologically rich savannah.  Chrysocyon is an icon which graces Brazil’s largest note of R$ 200.  I had never heard of maned wolves until I read that Catholic monks were feeding them in their Caraça sanctuary in the state of Minas Gerais.  Up to two wild wolves visit the monks at night when they want to complement their usual critter catches with a treat of chicken and fruit.

                                                                          Savana walking leisurely on the dry lagoon.

The Cerrado is Brazil's second-largest biome after the Amazon; it is the country water tower.  According to the WWF, it hosts over 11,000 species of plants and its fauna is as diverse as its flora, 199 mammals, 120 reptiles and 837 species of birds to list a few.  They represent 5% of the world’s species and 30% of Brazil’s biodiversity.  The Cerrado is even less protected than the Amazon, only 10% is somewhat off limit to the chainsaw putting various animals at risk of extension.  The maned wolf is listed as near threatened by IUCN (International Union for Conservation).  Half of the Cerrado has been cleared for farming and cattle ranching and deforestation continues. 

In contrast to Canis lupus (the wolf), Chrysocyon is a solidary animal for which Brazilians feel some fondness.  Habitat loss increasingly leads to unfavorable encounters with humans, especially when the wolf crosses a road or gets too close to chicken coops.  Fortunately, Savanna and her brood are not threatened.  She needs an area no smaller than 2500 soccer fields to hunt and strive.  Maned wolves are elusive and shy, hard to spot in their environment. 

Trijunçâo is a large agricultural, conservation and tourism property (fazenda in Portugues) at 377 km Northeast of Brasilia.  Encompassing 330 sq km, it is approximatively 5 times larger than the island of Manhattan.  Its name comes from the junction of three states, Bahia, Goiás and Minas Gerais.  I visited the geographic landmark which is located inside the property.  Trijunçâo forms an ecological corridor with the Grande Sertâo Veredas National Park.  The property belongs to the billionaire Roberto Marinho family, founder and owner of the media group Globo.   Besides the protection of the maned wolf, other conservation projects focusing on jaguar (spotted and melanistic) have been launched in cooperation with reputable conservation NGOs.  Jaguars are endemic to the Cerrado but harder to spot than in the Pantanal wetland.  Trijunçâo also run a sanctuary for injured local animals and a breeding center, including tapir, peccary, greater rhea and tortoises.

Large areas of the Cerrado are being cleared to make room for crops such as soybean, maize, and cotton, which require significant amounts of water.  This agricultural expansion is reducing the water supply.  Moreover, the steady deforestation of Western part of the Cerrado deprived the Pantanal of its nourishing waters and drought makes its vegetation prone to fires.  Since the early 2000s, the Cerrado has suffered many drought episodes, 2024 being the worst.  The lagoon near the lodge was dry (see above pic of the maned wolf), the other two lakes of the fazenda were only half full. With this in mind, Trijunçâo is testing high-value crops which use less land and less water resources.

Conservation initiatives are primarily accessible to large-scale agricultural enterprises belonging to deep-pocket urban owners.  Years ago, I twice stayed in the cattle ranch & lodge Fazenda Caiman in the Pantanal.  With a 530sq km the ranch is even larger than Trijunçâo.  1/3 of the property is fully protected.  Caiman belongs to the rich Klabin family, which launched its conservation initiatives 40 years ago.  It hosts the Onçafari NGO and the Hyacinth Macaw Institute.  In Trijunçâo, Onçafari runs the maned wolf project using its established jaguar protection and monitoring methods.  

In terms of conservation and size, no one can compete with the Roncador cattle ranch in the state of Mato Grosso, MT.  It covers 1520 sq km (26 times Manhattan!) and 720 sq km are covered by native vegetation.  The property has recently been divided between family members.  Roncador is a reference in agribusiness with focus on sustainable livestock. It has an estimated 100 000 heads of cattle.  In 2021, 1800 calves were lost to jaguars; last year, improved protection reduced the losses to 700.  This is evidence of the health of the wildlife in the native areas.  The motto of the owners is “to leave the planet a better place than we have found it.”

In the Cerrado, there are too many climate-deniers within the government, lawmakers, and agribusiness sectors.  Sustainable initiatives are dismissed as luxury and deniers have aggressively worked to obstruct climate actions.  Fortunately, without fully embracing conservation, a number of agribusinesses are adopting better technology and more sustainable practices because it makes economic sense.  Production should prioritize higher crop yield instead of expanding cultivated areas; otherwise, Brazilian maned wolves may remain on the R$ 200 notes.