Felidae of Central America

The jaguar (Panthera onca) is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus Panthera that is native to the Americas. Its distinctively marked coat features pale yellow to tan colored fur covered by spots that transition to rosettes on the sides, although a melanistic black coat appears in some individuals. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat species in the Americas and the third largest in the world. The jaguar's powerful bite allows it to pierce the carapaces of turtles and tortoises, and to employ an unusual killing method: it bites directl

The cougar (Puma concolor) (, KOO-gər), also called puma, mountain lion, catamount, and panther, is a large small cat native to the Americas. It inhabits North, Central and South America, making it the most widely distributed wild, terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere, and one of the most widespread in the world. Its range spans Yukon, British Columbia and Alberta in Canada, the Rocky Mountains and areas in the western United States. Further south, its range extends through Mexico to the Amazon rainforest and the southern Andes Mountains in Patagonia. It is an adaptable generalist spec

The ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Margarita. Carl Linnaeus scientifically described it in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized.

The jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi); or is a wild cat native to the Americas. Its range extends from central Argentina in the south and much South America east of the Andes, through Central America, and into northern Mexico. It occurred in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in south Texas as recently as the early 1990s but is now believed to be extirpated from the US. The jaguarundi is a medium-sized cat of slender build. Its coloration is uniform with two color morphs, gray and red. It has an elongated body, with relatively short legs, a small, narrow head, small, round ears, a short snout, an

The oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus), also known as the northern tiger cat, little spotted cat, and tigrillo, is a small spotted cat ranging from Central America to central Brazil. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and the population is threatened by deforestation and conversion of habitat to agricultural land.

The margay (Leopardus wiedii) is a small wild cat native to Mexico, Central and South America. A solitary and nocturnal felid, it lives mainly in primary evergreen and deciduous forest.

Leopardus is a genus comprising eight species of small cats native to the Americas. This genus is considered the oldest branch of a genetic lineage of small cats in the Americas whose common ancestor crossed the Bering land bridge from Asia to North America in the late Miocene.

subspecies of cougar