Santa Fe Province Releases 501 Wild Animals in 2025 Rehabilitation Milestone

The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change for Santa Fe province successfully facilitated the release of 501 wild animals throughout 2025, marking a significant achievement in its sustained wildlife rescue and rehabilitation program. This comprehensive effort, central to provincial conservation policy, saw the return of a diverse group of native fauna to their natural environments. The total tally comprised 412 avian specimens, 79 mammals, and 10 reptiles, demonstrating the breadth of species requiring intervention within the region.

The majority of these animals entered the provincial care system after being confiscated from illicit activities, primarily stemming from illegal wildlife trafficking networks or situations involving illegal pet ownership. This pattern aligns with broader regional concerns, as illegal trafficking is a noted threat to biodiversity in Argentina, affecting over 100 bird species, 20 reptile species, and 15 mammal species, with some classified as nationally or internationally threatened. The operations are centrally managed through the La Esmeralda Rescue Center, which serves as the primary hub for the recovery and ethological evaluation of these displaced animals in Santa Fe.

The La Esmeralda Rescue Center sometimes houses between 1500 and 2000 animals, including species at risk of extinction such as the yellow cardinal and the maned wolf. The rehabilitation process is rigorous, involving initial veterinary assessment, quarantine, recovery, and behavioral evaluation before any specimen is deemed fit for reintegration into protected areas. Notable individual releases contributed to the year's success, including an ocelot returned to the wild near San Cristóbal and a caiman designated as Ricardito, who was reintroduced after more than a decade in human care. The ocelot, a feline historically ranging from the southern United States to central Argentina, has been the subject of rewilding projects in other parts of Argentina, such as Iberá, following significant range loss over the last 150 years.

To bolster its capacity for these critical conservation tasks, the La Esmeralda Rescue Center is undergoing substantial modernization, with financial support secured through a loan from the French Development Agency (AFD), which focuses on climate, biodiversity, and sustainable development projects. The planned upgrades include the construction of a dedicated training center, administrative areas, multipurpose rooms, and new quarantine facilities, all aimed at elevating rehabilitation standards and overall capacity. Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Enrique Estévez, has emphasized that these actions reflect a sustained provincial strategy committed to the defense and preservation of Santa Fe's biodiversity, supported by Governor Maximiliano Pullaro and Vice Governor Gisela Scaglia. The successful 2025 releases, which surpassed the 520 specimens returned in 2024, underscore the ongoing commitment to conservation within the province, with the goal of eventually opening the facility for community educational engagement.