Category Zoology

Found in the Americas, a margay is a spotted wild cat with thick and soft fur. It is a solitary animal and is completely dependent on the cover of the treetop canopy in its territory. Sometimes, a margay hunts, sleeps, and even raises its young ones on trees.

A margay hunts small mammals, including monkeys, birds, eggs, lizards and tree frogs. While hunting, a margay often mimics the call of its prey to lure them. It also eats grass, fruit and other vegetation, which helps with digestion.

Though margays depend heavily on trees, they hunt on the ground too. When it gets down a tree, it walks slowly head first down the trunk, unlike most cats that rush down or descend hind feet first. If it ever falls from a tree, it uses its hind legs to catch hold of a branch and break the fall. Margays were hunted illegally until the 1990s. This led to a sharp decline in the number of margays.

The margay has been listed as ‘Near Threatened’ on the IUCN Red List.

Picture Credit : Google

Ocelots have pointed fangs which they use to deliver a killing bite. They have sharp scissor-like back teeth that can tear food, but are not appropriate for chewing. So, they swallow their food after tearing it down. An ocelot is a largely nocturnal spotted cat adapted to eating meat. It is twice the size of an average house cat. It feeds on rabbits, rodents, iguanas, fish, and frogs.

Populations of ocelot are found in lowland areas of the Americas from Texas to northern Argentina. Ocelots are also found in tropical forests, grasslands, or bush-covered regions.

Ocelots are largely terrestrial, but they are good climbers and often occupy treetops. The ocelot population is declining globally. Margays and oncillas closely resemble ocelots in general appearance and range. Ocelots however, are larger. Also, their tails are shorter than their hind legs.

A tuft of black hair on the tips of its ears and its short tail makes a lynx distinct from other big cats. A lynx is much larger than a housecat and can weigh up to 38 kilograms. There are so many varieties of lynx including the Eurasian lynx, Canadian lynx, and the Iberian lynx.

Lynx are rarely spotted during the day; they hunt stealthily at night. Their vision is so sharp that they can spot a mouse from as far as 76 metres. The tufts on their ears act as a hearing aid, which is not any poorer than their sense of vision. They are good climbers and swimmers too.

Unlike many other big cats, a lynx does not chase its prey. Instead, it waits for a prey to come by, after hiding behind a bush or a tree. It usually sneaks around its prey and pounces on it while the prey is busy eating.

A lynx either lives alone or in small groups. Populations of lynx are found in the remote northern forests of North America, Europe, and Asia.

Snow leopards are considered to be of high value; found in the mountains of Central Asia, they are hunted for their beautiful, warm fur as well as organs that are being used in traditional Chinese medicine.

Their wide, fur-covered feet act as natural snowshoes. They use their long tails for balance, and as blankets to cover sensitive body parts against the severe mountain chill. Snow leopards are most active during dawn and dusk. They can outrun their prey over snow and make leaps of up to 13 meters over rocks. They usually prey on blue sheep, markhor, marmots and domestic livestock.

Clouded leopards are found in the forests of Indonesia and the foothills of the Himalayas. They usually weigh around 11-20 kilograms and are named after their distinctive skin. Their tails are as long as their body and help in balancing the body weight.

Clouded leopards are great climbers; they can climb while hanging upside-down under branches and descend tree trunks head-first.

Cougars have a distinctive manner of hunting larger prey. The cougars catch a large prey, drag it up to 350 metres from the place of capture and bury it under leaves and debris. They return later at night to feed.

Cougars use both stealth and power to hunt animals. They prey on different species of hoofed animals, including moose, elk, white-tailed deer, mule deer, and caribou. They will also eat smaller creatures like squirrels, muskrat, porcupine, beaver, raccoon, striped skunk, coyote, bobcats, rabbits, birds, and even snails and fish.

Cougars are native to the Americas. They are solitary animals and hunt either at night or during the early morning hours. They can run at a speed of 55 kilometres per hour and can leap over a distance of nine metres!

Cougars are known by many names including puma, mountain lion, panther, and catamount. Many of you may be familiar with the famous sports brand, ‘Puma’. A full-grown puma weighs up to 90 kilograms.

Picture Credit : Google

The jaguar is the only big cat in America. In fact, it is the third biggest cat after the tiger and the lion. Like many cats, the jaguar too lives alone. Its skin is similar to that of a leopard.

Though jaguars are good climbers and swimmers, they usually hunt on the ground. Jaguars usually attack their prey by pouncing on it. Their powerful jaws and teeth make it easy for them to kill the prey.

Jaguars usually prefer large animals to hunt like tapirs and deer. They can kill a cow that weighs about 450 kilograms! They also hunt small animals like armadillos turtles and porcupines. Like many other big cats, jaguars too drag their kill to a secluded spot before eating it.

Jaguars are worshipped in many cultures that originated in native South America. They are often seen as a symbol of strength and power.