Jaguarundi
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| Herpailurus yaguarondi ( |
The Jaguarundi (Herpailurus yaguarondi or sometimes Puma yaguarondi, Felis yaguarondi in older sources) is a medium-sized Central and South American wild cat: average length 65 cm (30 inches) with 45 cm (20 in) of tail. It has short legs and an appearance somewhat like an otter; the ears are short and rounded. The coat is unspotted, uniform in color, and varying from blackish to brownish gray (gray phase) or from foxy red to chestnut (red phase). The two color phases were once thought to represent two distinct species; the gray one called "jaguarundi", and the red one called "eyra". However, these are the same species and both color phases may be found in the same litter. Their coats have no markings except for spots at birth. These cats are closely related to puma as evident by their similar genetic structure and chromosome count.
Their habitat is lowland brush areas close to a source of running water. They occasionally inhabit dense tropical areas as well. They are
The litter consists of one to four kittens. They are raised socially after a 70-day gestation. The kittens become mature at approximately 2 years of age.
These cats are not particularly sought after for their fur, but they are suffering decline and extinction due to loss of habitat.
Subspecies:
- Herpailurus yaguarondi armeghinoi, Western Argentina
- Herpailurus yaguarondi cacomitli, South Texas and eastern Mexico
- Herpailurus yaguarondi fossata, southern Mexico to Honduras
- Herpailurus yaguarondi melantho, Peru and Brazil
- Herpailurus yaguarondi panamensis, Nicaragua to Ecuador
- Herpailurus yaguarondi tolteca, Arizona and western Mexico
- Herpailurus yaguarondi yagouaroundi, Guyana and
Jaguarundi have been sighted around the
[edit] References
- Cat Specialist Group (2002). Herpailurus yaguarondi. 2006