Mysterious wild cat - black jaguar: description, habitats

One of the most amazing and rare representatives of the cat family will be described in this article.

Once upon a time, ancient people (Maya) worshiped this animal as a symbol of the power of the gods. They even had such an expression: "Spread the skin of a jaguar - and you will see all the stars of the universe."

Like a nightly mysterious ghost, a jaguar represents an animal following which a fairy legend goes.

Black Jaguar: photo, description

A predatory cat (black panther) is one of the most amazing and beautiful representatives of this family.

In some parts of the Earth there is a sense of the spirit of the mysterious wild world. In these places, nature has been preserved in its original appearance, its wild laws here dictated by the strongest. In some places in some parts of Central America and Argentina (the northern part), the same jaguar lives - a huge wild cat, a single predator.

Brazilian hunters believe that he has some kind of powerful hypnosis, and the Indians - that he is able to simulate the sounds of screaming birds and animals (a way to lure the prey).

A black jaguar belongs to a cat family and, like a lion and a tiger, belongs to the genus Panther, and takes up the 3rd place in size. The weight of this predator is 120 kg (the recorded record is 158 kg), and the body has a length of 120 to 190 cm without tail. The length of the latter is about one meter.

Habitat

Black jaguars live in the territories of South America, mainly in Brazil and Paraguay, in the rainforests.

In general, the range of their habitat - from the north of Argentina to Central America. Unfortunately, completely jaguars are exterminated in Uruguay and El Salvador. The largest representatives of this predator live in Brazil in the state of Mato Grosso.

The black jaguar is an animal that inhabits predominantly in tropical forests, although it is often found in both the pampas and the xerophytic shrubby areas (semi-deserts, deserts and the seashore). Very rarely they are found in mountainous areas.

Today, the habitat of the jaguar has been reduced by 2/3. For example, in the USA (in the south) the last representatives of this species were exterminated in 1900.

Habitat conditions

Most often a single way of life leads a jaguar. The black panther prefers hunting after sunset and just before dawn.

One individual has an area of 25 to 100 square meters. Km. And the area of their territory in form, as a rule, represents the shape of a triangle, and its size depends on the landscape, the number of game and sex of this predatory animal inhabited there (usually it is much smaller in females).

On its territory in one particular area, usually a male hunts for about 3-4 days, after which it seeks prey in another zone of its possessions. Jaguar does not tolerate the presence at home of other animals of the family of cats, but in relation to relatives, he is peaceful, and therefore the territory of these animals can and intersect.

A black jaguar usually sits in ambush (in tall grass, on a tree), waiting for its prey. Seeing her, he attacks from the back or side, grasping her neck. Unlike other wild cats, sometimes he bites the skull in prey. His main catch is tapirs, capybaras, bakers, birds, snakes, monkeys, rodents, etc.

The habits

Very few cases of attacks of this predator on people are known, and more often it was provoked by the person himself. Scientists (naturalists, zoologists) and travelers believe that the predator is just curious, and not aggressive.

In fact, a black jaguar is a freestyle cat, loving wild expanses.

It is quite willing to attack domestic cattle. The peculiarity of the jaguar is that it does not pursue fleeing animals.

He likes to dig out the eggs of the tortoise, and can also deal with the turtles themselves, taking out their soft parts from under the shell of their paw. He just crushes smaller individuals with his teeth. In addition, this predator is a magnificent swimmer and a good fisherman.

As a rule, he eats his prey, beginning with the head. They do not feed on carrion almost.

When hunting, the jaguar makes unusual sounds - guttural, snarls, and during the marriage period and at night he makes a loud roar.

In conclusion, a little about the danger

The black jaguar, like all wild cats, is a fearless, powerful and dexterous predator. Jaguars are able not only to attack a victim that surpasses the attacker in terms of parameters, but also with little or no effort to deal with the prey. For example, with a body weight of 120 kg, a jaguar can take possession of an animal with a weight that reaches 300 kg.

With seeming aggressiveness and cruelty, a panther will never attack unless she is hungry. In the opposite case, the hungry predator still does not miss the chance to attack any prey, including a human, although this happens rarely.

The reason for this behavior of the jaguar is the intrusion of people into its space. Hunting in its territories, a jaguar can perceive a person as its prey.

And yet, despite the hypnotic abilities of this animal, for a formidable roar, strength and daring temper, it suffered from human behavior towards him because of the valuable fur. In this regard, wild cats are on the brink of extinction. Today the panther is protected by law and listed in the international Red Book.