Jaguar population threatened by immigration fence

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/05/05/jaguars.fence/index.html

The idea of building a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border has been controversial from the start, but now there are new questions being raised about the impact the fence could have on wildlife. Jaguars are known to populate northern Mexico, but it is only in the past couple of decades that they have been seen in the hills of southern Arizona, now thought to be a breeding ground for the endangered population of roughly 120 Jaguars. Conservationists are becoming very concerned that the fence, which is built in the path of the Jaguar crossing from Mexico to the U.S., would limit the growth of their population and would propel the species towards extinction. This issue is extremely relevant to our society’s conception of place. Humans have constructed real borders, establishing places in what were once just spaces. Jaguars see no distinction between the land north and south of the border, however we protect this distinction through a process of founding borders which has now been elevated to the building of fences. In order to build the fence the Department of Homeland Security has already waived 30 environmental laws. Conservationists argue that the fence will have a dramatic affect on the regions wildlife without actually achieving its objective; Mountain lion tracker Jack Childs has pointed out that “A fence like that is going to inhibit wildlife movements and migrations back and forth. It’s not going to effectively stop human traffic. They’ve got wire cutters and torches.” The building of the fence has raised many questions about place, and we must now focus on wildlife concerns in that space as well the human and political questions.