‘I was thrilled and shocked’: images raise hopes of return of wild jaguars to the US

A series of sightings suggests the big cats are, against the odds, growing in numbers in New Mexico and Arizona. But Trump's border wall could yet halt their progress

The young, muscular male approached from the east at about 4am. He paused briefly in front of the motion-sensor camera, seemingly posing for the photo. It was overall a moment of euphoria," says Emily Burns, programme director at the Sky Island Alliance conservation group in Arizona, as she walks along a rutted forest service road towards a canyon framed by lichen-covered cliffs.

I was equal parts thrilled and shocked that there was a jaguar here."