Tucson — The Desert Museum announced the birth of a rare ocelot in March. The kitten was born to the Museum’s resident adult female ocelot.
The birth was the result of collaborations with the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden’s Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife and El Paso Zoo. Between the three establishments, two litters of ocelots have been born, following artificial insemination (AI) with frozen semen. The first (and last) ocelot born following AI with frozen semen was born more than 24 years ago.
According to the Museum, Ocelots (Felis pardalis) are among Arizona’s rarest mammals. These medium-sized, short-haired cats are one of the 25 endangered animal and plant species that are represented in the Museum’s collection.