This is an animal I have always loved, but no one I know seems to recognize. They came to mind when I was watching Monster Quest, and they were talking about a black panther in the US, and how there were sightings of such an animal in Texas. In the end there was no proof...but I always thought, why aren't jaguarundi's being considered? And after some searching, I came across this article:
Are US 'Black Panthers' Actually Jaguarundi?
More Pics, and more interesting information (at least to me, hopefully to some of you guys too!) under the cut
Jaguarundi's (Puma yaguarondi) can be found in southern United States, Central America, and South America. They come in a few colors such as from blackish or brownish gray to chestnut red or tawny colored. The red colored jaguarundis were thought at one point, to be a separate species called the Eyra.
One interesting tidbit is their unusual vocals, they chirp and whistle, and these noises are often mistaken as bird calls. Like most cats, they eat small mammals, unlike most cats, they also eat fruit.
Other names for the jaguarundi are Leoncillo, meaning little lion in Spanish, or the otter cat. The reasoning for this is jaguarundi's are excellent swimmers according to some reports in Mexico. Their body shape also resembles that of a weasel/otter. It has also been reported that they can spring from trees, but are mostly found on the ground.
Not much information is known about these creatures, as they remain elusive to humans, however, if you want to read more(such as more details on mating&habitat or their maybe relation to old world cheetahs!), here are some links:
Link 1General info
Link 2 More General info
Link 3 Texas info on the jaguarundi
Link 4 Wikipedia entry
Again, sorry if I stepped on any toes, I just really loves these cats and would like for more people to know about them <3 Please let me know how to fix anything for future posts.
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