Elephant Sanctuary Brazil is located within the Cerrado Biome – the second largest in the country. The flora and fauna of the region are spectacular, and we have been interested in learning more about the native species since we first began building here. The cerrado is reported to be home to nearly 70 species of mammals, over 800 species of birds, and about 120 species of reptiles.
One of our caregivers, Gabi, installed two new wildlife cameras a few weeks ago, so that we can keep an eye on the wild animal life in sanctuary and potentially catch a glimpse of animals we’ve suspected of living nearby, yet never seen. It is important for us to know what animals may be visiting the property when we aren’t around, but we are also curious about all of our non-human neighbors.
The land here had been privately owned and was utilized for cattle farming for many years before our arrival, but the surrounding area is also home to the native species who have lived in the area for lifetimes. Because the space was a cattle farm before the sanctuary was established, we initially had infrequent wildlife sightings. Once the land began to return to a more natural state, we have noticed a significant increase in wildlife returning to the area – beginning with the native birds, followed by other mammals.
We know there are monkeys, anteaters, foxes, and dozens of kinds of birds around each day. Recently we captured some nighttime video of tapirs – which is no surprise – and we’ve now filmed a fox and an ocelot as well. We noticed ocelot tracks nearby beginning a few years ago, but have never actually seen one. It was incredibly exciting to capture one on camera because they are absolutely gorgeous, but also very elusive.
Ocelots are small, so they don’t pose a threat to the elephants, but we do keep a close eye on the chickens and other small animals near the house, just in case. With any luck, we will have more wildlife videos to share in the future.
Comments(15) 
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Cintia Abney says
January 22, 2022 at 2:09 pmLove it!!
Is the tapir in the video one of our fellow?
Kat Blais says
January 22, 2022 at 4:46 pmnope, he is wild.
Deb says
January 22, 2022 at 3:01 pmSounds like a piece of HEAVEN to me!
I’m curious, are you concerned about poisonous snakes biting the elephants?
Kat Blais says
January 22, 2022 at 4:47 pmnot really, we had more poisonous and aggressive snakes in Tennessee. the skin on their feet is generally too thick for most fangs and snakes usually avoid the big vibrations coming their way.
John says
January 22, 2022 at 3:11 pmElephants and ocelots – oh my!
Marcia says
January 22, 2022 at 3:19 pmWow. Spectacular!
Katie Howard says
January 22, 2022 at 3:35 pmHow exciting!!!
Wim says
January 22, 2022 at 4:13 pmQuite impressed by your nightly visitors. Wonderful when the circle of life is turned on again.
Debbie Sides says
January 22, 2022 at 4:33 pmThat is amazing! I can only imagine what it’s like to live there surrounded by all that beauty. Paradise!
Carey says
January 22, 2022 at 5:07 pmNot many have the luck to catch a beautiful ocelot , so so lucky.! if you are re-wilding the land you will surely offer increasingly more to encourage the eco system there before … it’s exciting on so many levels. Great to see that development Kat 👏🏼 Please do tell us what you do with all the ladies “manure” !
Kat Blais says
January 22, 2022 at 10:10 pmwe compost most of it, but the wildlife picks through much of it before we can get to it. because of the poor digestion of the species, elephant dung always has ‘leftovers’ in it, that other animals are more than happy to help themselves to.
Angie Gibson says
January 22, 2022 at 6:25 pmAn ocelot! Beautiful and elusive like the snow leopard 😍 I do hope they do not pose any threat to the tapirs—love those stout little guys❤️ Never a dull moment out in nature🌿🌴🌺🌿🌳🌼🌿
Kat Blais says
January 22, 2022 at 10:09 pmnope, the tapirs are much bigger than they are.
Terry says
January 22, 2022 at 6:34 pmSo awesome!!! What a gift!
elaine richard says
January 23, 2022 at 6:10 amSo not only are you giving refuge to the elephants but you’re also restoring the land to its healthy former self, rich, as you say (and we get to see, thanks to the new cameras), in wonderful indigenous creatures. Brilliant.
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