Jaguarundi Herpailurus yaguarondi

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Jaguarundi are the strangest looking of all the small cats, with slender, elongated bodies, small flattened heads, and a long tail more reminiscent of an otter or weasel than a cat. The short, smooth, unmarked coat shows three distinct colour phases: black, brownish grey, and a reddish brown phase known as the eyra. The ears are short and rounded, and this is one of the few cat species not to have a contrasting colour on the backs of the ears. Their eyes are small, set closely together, and are light amber or brownish in colour. The legs are short and slender, and the tail is long and tapered.

These cats are not thought to be closely related to the other small South American cats. Their ancestors probably evolved in Eurasia and invaded the Americas via the Bering land bridge about the same time as the ancestor of the cougar Puma concolor.

A cat of the lowlands not generally found above 2,000 metres, jaguarundi otherwise occupy a broad range of both open and closed habitats - from dry scrub, swamp and savannah woodland to primary forest. They are more thinly distributed in moist rain forest. They have been reported to prefer forest edges and secondary bush, but this may be because this diurnal cat is most frequently seen in these areas. Access to dense ground vegetation seems to determine habitat suitability for these cats, and their low, slender bodies allow them to easily slip through this vegetation.

Their diurnal and crepuscular habits make them the most observed small cat in South America. A radio telemetry study in Belize found the peak activity period to be from 1,400 to 1,600 hours, with only residual activity after sunset. They have frequently been observed travelling and foraging in pairs.

This same study found the home ranges of these cats to be huge. Home ranges varied considerably between males and females, measuring 88 - 100 square km for each of two adult males and 13 - 20 square km for an adult female. Comparatively, the much larger jaguar Panthera onca has a home range of 28 - 40 square km. The ranges of the males overlapped less than 5%. Both sexes used different and widely spaced portions of their ranges for irregular periods of time, rather than making regular boundary patrols.

They are thought to hunt mainly on the ground and have a varied diet, including small rodents, rabbits, armadillos, opossums, quail, wild turkey, reptiles, frogs, fish and domestic poultry. They may occasionally eat leaves and fallen fruit as well, but this is probably only for the moisture content. The body shape would suggest terrestrial habits, but jaguarundi have been observed seeking refuge in trees, often moving from branch to branch.

These cats are reported to be quite easy to tame, and are said to have been kept as pets by early Central American natives (before the Spanish conquistadors came) to control the rodent populations around villages and crops.

They appear to be relatively common over much of their range, but jaguarundi are quite rare in Mexico and Central America. Their habit of raiding domestic poultry has not endeared them to farmers, and they are likely subject to hunting pressure around settled areas. Their fur has never been in demand for the fur trade because of its poor quality and lack of spotting, although they are undoubtedly caught in traps set for other species. Habitat destruction and human encroachment are the main threats to their existence.

Actual population numbers are not known. A feral population of escaped pets is said to have been established in Florida, where they were introduced in the 1940's. Hunting is prohibited over much of their range with Brazil, Nicaragua, Ecuador, El Salvador and Guyana the exceptions. CITES has placed the species overall on Appendix II, with the North and Central American populations on Appendix I.