The Nine Big Cats
Created | Updated Mar 17, 2008
The name 'big cat' is used to describe cats (wild felids) bigger than the average moggy, which inhabit parts of the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. In total there are thirty-six species of wild cats. Each having their own unique traits, which makes defining the wild cat easy. Below are definitions of seven of the thirty-six wild cats' existent in the world.
Cat Families
The cat family "felidae" or felids, is divided into three, or possibly four, groups:Panthera (roaring cats), which includes Lions, Tigers, Jaguars, Leopards and Snow Leopards (also called Ounces)
Cheetahs. Felis (purring cats) which includes pumas as well as all sorts of ocelots, margays, scottish wild cats and domestic cats. Lynxes (possibly, or they may be part of the genus Felis.)The clouded leopard is considered a member of Felis by some and a member of Panthera by others.
Where to see these big cats - wild and captivity
Food
Hunting techniques
Description
The Lion (Panthera leo) belongs to the family Felidae and differs in size depending on whether it is a male or a female. Males usually weigh in at about 250 kg (550 lb) while the female lioness weighs around 136 kg (300 lb). The typical life span of a lion in the wild is around 10–14 years, while those in captivity can live up to and beyond 20 years of age. Lions are probably the most well studied of big cats as they are the easiest to see and they aren't endangered yet. Lions live in groups called prides, which consists of one or two males, and a host of females and cubs. While males may not hunt, they live far from secure lives. As when they mature they must leave the pride they have grown up with so as not to compete with their father. They then try and take over the pride of another male and if they are successful will kill off the cubs that aren’t theirs. They then take up the position of father and take care of their females and young, which is difficult for them if they or a cub falls ill and a transient male seeks to kill them. Females, on the other hand are better protected by the pride if they get injured and live twice as long as males.
Where they come from
Lions are believed to originate from Africa, but the Asiatic lion remains living in the Gir forest of Gujarat in NW India. Lions have been hunted out of South Eastern Europe and the Middle East and no longer lives alongside the Bengal and Caspian Tigers, Middle Eastern leopards and cheetahs which, are now considered endangered.
Food
The amount of prey that is killed by the lions, depends on the size of the pride, for the lions need to kill enough for every member of the pride to sufficiently eat and survive. Usually it is the lionesses that are found hunting prey, while the males protect the pride from intruders and other outside threats. In hunting male lions assist with the hunt by roaring and scaring the game into the line of the waiting females, who will then chase it towards the other members of the pride that will pounce on it and kill it with a single bite to the throat. In the pecking order of lions males eat first, then lionesses fight over the food and finally the cubs who potentially face starvation and death if there is not enough food for them.
Leopards (Panthera pardus)
Description
Leopards (Panthera pardus) like lions, tigers and jaguars belong to the genus Panthera. They can reach sizes of 1 to 2 metres long and weigh around 30 and 70 kg. While females are usually found to be two-thirds the size of males. The fur of Leopards is usually light tan, white and fawn in colour especially those that live in the deserts, which also have black spots that show up in daylight. However, leopards can also be spotted wearing black fur1 such as those found in the rainforests that are also known as black panthers. The spots of a leopard also differ depending where they are on the body with small spots located on the head, while larger spots with pale centres can be located on the rest of the body. It was first thought that leopards originated from lions and panthers producing offspring and this is reflected in the name leopard.
Where they come from
Leopards used to roam the Middle East, North Africa, and much of central and East Asia but have now been wiped out in these areas and are now only found in captivity, South Africa and the same Russian forests as the Siberian tiger.
Food
Their core characteristics are adaptability and cunning and they will eat everything, from cattle to lizards. They can also be found living alongside people, with 74% of their diet constituting of domestic dogs and they have been known to kill humans too. Leopards differ from other carnivores in Africa because they manage to drag their prey up a tree to eat away from others that would find their food tasty. They also keep their cubs up trees so as to keep them safe from others.
Jaguars (Panthera onca)
Description
At first glance leopards and jaguars look very similar and it is very difficult to tell them apart. But they do have differences, such as the Jaguar is larger and much more muscular and due to its powerful jaw muscles the head of the Jaguar is bigger. They also differ regards their spots,tree climbing ability and swimming ability.
Where they come from
Jaguars live mainly in rainforests and swamps in central to South America. They are the biggest cats in the Western Hemisphere and the third largest in the world. Historically, Jaguars inhabited the Southwest United States but during the 1800s they were hunted to extinction. They have also vanished from many of their open habitats, finding refuge in the rainforests where they are rarely spotted. Of the genus panthera, Jaguars are the least dangerous to man, and most attacks are provoked.
Food
Jaguars have a huge and varied diet living off tapirs, peccaries, brocket deer, armadillos, sloths, and monkeys. They hunt in water, up trees and on land and have also been known to eat fish, turtles, capybaras and even large caimans and crocodiles. Jaguars are the only cats to kill their prey by using their big jaws to bite into the head of their prey.
Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus)
Description
The Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) also belongs to the cat family (Felidae) but rather than using stealth or pack tactics in order to hunt it reaches speeds of up to 110 km/h (70 mph) to track down its prey. Due to its speed, the cheetah is known to be the fastest land mammal on earth. But its speed does not help when it comes to catching its food for they cannot bring their prey down alone and they are defenceless when it comes to other animals competing for the kill they have brought down. They are also defenceless when it comes to other animals trying to steal away their cubs from lions that may well eat them if they find them. Thus it is no wonder that the cubs of the cheetah face the highest mortality rate going amongst the big cats.
Where they come from
Today Cheetahs may be found living in Africa, Asia (Iran) and about 200 live in Iran (Khorasan Province). But historically they lived in northern India and the Iranian plateau, where aristocrats made them domesticated and used to hunt antelopes.
Food
A cheetahs diet is mainly made up of meat as they are carnivores. This meat comes from Thomson's gazelles, Guinea fowl, hares, impala, Wildebeest and calves. Contradictory, to the other big cats, the cheetah is a diurnal hunter, meaning that it hunts during early morning or in the cool night atmosphere. Cheetahs use their vision to hunt down their prey, rather than using scent, hunting in groups of three which act together to bring down their prey by trying to trip it up and biting its throat.
Lynx (Lynx)
Description
There is great confusion amongst scientists at present whether the Lynx is a member of the genus Felis or whether it forms a separate group, but generally a lynx has come to be known as one of several medium-sized wild cats.
Where they come from
The lynx takes up refuge in the forests of Scandinavia, Himalayas and North America alongside a dense coverage of foliage from shrubs, reeds and grass. They are known to hunt only on the ground but like the jaguar they can also swim and climb trees.
Food
The lynx primary source of food comes from the snowshoe hare, but they also have been known to feed off red squirrel, other small mammals and some birds, including grouse. Sometimes they eat larger animals which, have died due to other causes and their diet varies depending on the time of year.
Pumas (Felis (Puma) concolor)
Description
The puma (Puma concolor) is more closely related to the common house cat than the lion and is known by a variety of different names including cougar, mountain lion, panther, catamount, and painted cat.
Where they come from
Pumas, cougars, Florida panthers, catamounts, mountain lions and mountain painters are all types of Puma and originate from America.
Clouded Leopards (Neofelis nebulosa)
Description
The Clouded Leopard, (Neofelis nebulosa) measures 60 to 110 cm (2 ft to 3 ft 6 in) in length and weighs in excess of 11 to 20 kg (25 to 44 lb) and is the smallest of all the big cat species. Its coat is tan or tawny and distinctively covered in markings, which resemble clouds, thus how it got both its common and scientific names. While the distinct structure of its skull enables it to be classified under another name other than felid. Clouded leopards are the best tree climbers of all the cats and can even walk upside down on a branch and hang from its hind feet alone. Like snow leopards, clouded leopards have long tails that give them balance as they climb through the trees.
Where they come from
The clouded leopard lives in Southeast Asia from as far, west as Northeast India and the Himalayas, to central China and Indonesia.
Food
They are prone to eating monkeys and birds, but have also been sighted consuming deer and pigs. In this way it may be believed that they hunt both on land and in the trees although little is known about their exact hunting traits.
Population
Sadly, wild cats are increasingly becoming endangered. Only 23,000 lions, fewer than 12,000 cheetah and an estimated 15,000 jaguars exist in the wild and unless something is done about it soon they may be lost forever.
Snow Leopard
Tiger
Another big cat is the tiger to read more about the tiger why not visit
