Jaguar (Panthera onca)

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The third largest cat in the world (after tigers and lions), and the largest western hemisphere cat. Males can reach up to 300 pounds in the Pantanal region of Brazil, but are more commonly 250 pounds, with females about 200 pounds. Jaguars in northern Mexico are only about 150 pounds for males, 100 for females. Jaguars used to be found in the southern United States but are considered extinct here now; a male occasionally crosses over from Maxico, but there is no breeding population. The last wild one recorded in California was shot in the late 1800's. Subspeciation in jaguars is under debate; all captive jaguars are currently managed as one meta-population. They look like a larger, stronger cousin of the leopard. Their rosettes are larger and set farther apart, with enclosed spots more common than in the leopard. They are much more muscular, in particular in the neck region. They are one of only a few cats that enjoy water. In many areas they are declining or near extinction, however they are listed as Near Threatened because of the large numbers surviving in the Amazon basin rainforests. Overall they are close to Vulnerable status, with three potential subspecies being in worse shape. They face extirpation at the hands of local cattle ranchers, fragmentation of forest habitats, deforestation rates of up to 15%, and competition with humans for prey.

Jaguars at EFBC/FCC

  • Annie
    		•  annie Daughter of Twilight and Jesse, born here 19 April 1998. Handraised, born via C-section. Separated from her brothers at about 16 months of age, because the males are so much larger and they wrestle roughly when they play.Photo history at births_1998.
  • Cisco
    		•  cisco Son of Twilight and Jesse, born here 19 April 1998. Handraised, born via C-section. Separated now from his brother Doc, as they were chewing on each other's tails. A spotted jaguar like his father, his brother Doc being black causes people to think they're not related.Photo history at births_1998.
  • Doc
    		•  doc Son of Twilight and Jesse, born here 19 April 1998. Handraised, born via C-section. Separated now from his brother Cisco, as they were chewing on each other's tails. A black jaguar like his mother, you can see his spots in the sunlight.Photo history at births_1998.
  • Nacon
    		•  nacon Male, arrived 24 July 03, born 20 May 02 at Audubon Zoo. Brought here to be paired with Annie.More photos.
  • Poncho
    		•  poncho Son of Annie and Nacon, born here 3 June 2005. Mother-raised, very outgoing.Photo history at births05.
  • Rocco
    		•  rocco Son of Annie and Nacon, born here 8 June 2008. Hand-raised.Photo history at births08.
  • Rosa
    		•  rosa Daughter of Annie and Nacon, born here 3 June 2005. Mother-raised, shier than her brother.Photo history at births05.
  • Twilight
    		•  twilight Female, born 31 May 1988, arrived here from Baton Rouge Zoo in June 1991. A black jaguar, paired with Jesse. During her first pregnancy, she got bigger and bigger, but never went into labor. Finally we performed a C-section when we estimated she was a week overdue. The cubs were dead. After that we performed a C-section for each pregnancy, except one in which she only had one cub and she had it herself before we expected it. But, she didn't take care of that cub, so we have hand-raised all her 9 cubs. She has offspring at many zoos around the United States. She is fixed now.More Photos - Jan 2004, Yawning, Jesse & Twilight, October 01, Black jaguar spots, Twilight

    Video/sounds of our jaguars
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