Photo Friday: Sand Cat kittens

Margay

The nocturnal and mysterious Margay (Leopardus wiedi)

Photo Friday: What’s this? A seriously scary Black-Footed Cat? No, just one yawning!

Scary Black-Footed Cat - Felis nigripes

Do I have your complete attention?

Ocelots in Arizona? Apparently So…

There have two recent developments in regards to ocelots in the United States, specifically in the state of Arizona.  The first being the ocelot that was captured on film by the Sky Island Alliance in November 7, 2009 (although the photo was retrieved and made public on April 19, 2010) in Cochise County.  Although, there is an existing ocelot population in Texas, this was the first documented wild ocelot captured on film alive in Arizona.  Cochise County is located on the southeastern corner of the state of Arizona and the area is approximately 2000 miles from the area where the Texas ocelots are located.

The second incident involved an ocelot found dead (apparently killed by a motorist) in Globe on April 18,2010 and reported by the Arizona Game and Fish Department on April 23, 2010.  It seemed like these two events might be linked.  Was it the same ocelot?  Or was it another wild ocelot in Arizona?  Or was the Globe ocelot an escaped or released captive animal?  Currently, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Forensic Lab (located in Ashland, Oregon) is conducting DNA analysis on the Globe ocelot to determine the origins of the cat.

After reviewing photos of both cats, Jessica Lamberton, the Wildlife Linkages Program Coordinator with the Sky Island Alliance, does not believe that they are the same cat.  In additional, Lamberton indicates that her organization has records of 6 individual ocelots that have been filmed in the Sonora area (a state in northwestern Mexico).  The outcome of the US Fish and Wildlife investigation is greatly anticipated and as more information becomes available, it will be dispersed.

Vocal Mimicry of the Margay

The Margay (Leopardus weidii) is a neotropical wild cat whose habitat extends from Mexico to Argentina.  This predator has several unique characteristics, such as a tail that is as long as 70% of the length of its body, a feature that is indicative of its arboreal lifestyle.   The Margay also has flexible ankles that allow it to rotate its feet 180 degrees so it can slowly travel head first down trees and hang from tree limbs by one hind foot!  While these traits are impressive, the Margay’s true strength as a predator may lie in its vocal repertoire.

The BioOne Online Journal posted an informative piece on the margay’s hunting strategy to attract the wild pied tamarin (Saguinus bicolor).  Margays mimic the sound of the wild pied tamarin’s young, causing confusion and drawing their prey into an easier position to initiate an attack.  This highly evolved predatory behavior is extremely effective and sounds like something from a science fiction story.

And it’s not just wild cats that mimic sounds. In fact, the domesticated cat, that most of you share your home with, is able to affect its owners behavior by mimicking the sound of a baby crying and playing off human’s innate tendencies to appease crying young.

Both the margay and the domestic cat share a behavior driven by an attempt to control their food source and in the case of the house cat, that just may be you.

To learn more about the margay, visit our Margay section.

Black Footed Cat – Spitfire

Black Footed cat

Black Footed Cat (Felis nigripes) at SOS Care in California.

Ocelot

Another taken at Sonora Desert Museum, this time of their Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis)

Desert Cougars

Another one from Sonora Desert Museum taken last year.

These two cougars have a large open exhibit with rocks, water and caves.

Desert Bobcat

Bobcat, Lynx rufus

This Bobcat picture was taken at Sonora Desert Museum just north of Tucson, Arizona in September , 2009.  The natural looking vertical rocky exhibit has two Bobcats but the ground where this one is sitting is about 20 feet below the surrounding area and, as a consequence, lacking in light.

There are two viewing areas, one above and this one below that has both windows and a clear area with thin vertical wires through which this was taken. Normally they are asleep on a rocky shelf but when dinner comes late in the afternoon they become attentive and mobile as shown here.

Canon 100-400  zoom at 200mm 1/250 f5.6 ISO 3200